


Jason Grace and the (tba)

by 4_of_diamonds



Category: Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard - Rick Riordan, Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan, The Trials of Apollo - Rick Riordan
Genre: Canonical Character Death, Gen, I'm mean to Jason, Jason Grace Goes to Valhalla, Obscure Gods, Original Character(s), The Burning Maze (Trials of Apollo) Spoilers, The Tyrant's Tomb (Trials of Apollo) Spoilers, What-If, post tyrants tomb, riordanverse crossover
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-21
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-02-27 18:47:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 22
Words: 47,484
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22830472
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/4_of_diamonds/pseuds/4_of_diamonds
Summary: Burning Maze Spoilers, Tyrants tomb spoilersJason Grace had died.He expected to be sent to the underworld, not the Norse hotel of death known as Valhalla. Now he spends the rest of his days immortalised as an einherji, detached from his grieving friends.As pieces of his old life return, Jason is swept back into the struggle of Apollo and the Triumvirate, this time with new friends at his side. But Nero, too, has made unexpected allies, with strange gods. Norse and Roman mythology are intertwined as Jason is forced to address his place in the nine worlds, post death.
Relationships: Magnus Chase/Alex Fierro
Comments: 197
Kudos: 200





	1. Sorry, wrong afterlife

Jason was tired.

That was one thing he knew for sure. Everything else, well, that’s where things got tricky.

He sat up, shielding his eyes from the harsh sun

His head hurt, but that didn’t surprise him. His head always hurt. What intrigued him was the pain in his back, a dull ache emanating from the centre of his shoulder blades, rippling through his spine as he shifted to his feet.

He scanned his surroundings. He appeared to be in a courtyard of some kind. A wall obscured his vision of the outside, but he picked up the sounds of people and car horns. Tall trees flanked the sides, looking almost golden in the midday sun. 

At least, it looked like it was midday. He had no idea how he got here, or where he was.

Nervousness settled in. The last time this he felt like this, he woke up on a bus at the grand canyon. It hadn’t ended well.

Jason moved toward the edge of the courtyard, hobbling from the imbalance of one of his shoes missing. He paralleled the edge of the wall, searching for an exit, while running through familiar thoughts. _My name is Jason Grace. I am 16 years old. I am a son of Jupiter._

Right. So he still had his memory. 

Then how did he end up here?

He ran through the hazy memories of the last few hours. He had met up with Apollo, the God Apollo, and Piper--the thought of her sent a pang of guilt through him--and they went to find Caligula. There had been boats, and the strange pandai. A fight. He traced his arms, arms that should have been lined with scars from the arrows that hit him. Lighting and waves and--

_Oh._

The memory shuddered back into him, Caligula shoving a spear through his back and the stars fading away.

He hadn’t expected the entrance to the underworld to look like this. Percy had been there, but the memory of the story was too far off; he couldn’t help running through the last few moments, obscuring everything else.

Gods. Percy, Leo, Piper--would they know by now? The people in Camp Jupiter? Reyna? Thalia?

He sat down again, his breathing heavy. He looked upwards to the sky, which had since become shrouded in grey.

Jason searched his pockets. He only found a monopoly house from his shrine plans, and the golden coin. He hoped it would work; not that he would need the weapon anymore.

He turned to the building looking ahead of him. It looked like at least five stories tall, made of a pale grey stone.

Jason approached the front. Looking at it had entranced him to come forward. His nerves were quelled, only focused on his footsteps.

The door contrasted the rest of the harsh exterior, made of aged wood. Double his height, it still looked imposing. It was symmetrical, each side with an iron door knocker intricately carved into the head of a wolf

He cupped one in his palm. The familiar face was comforting, despite the cool surface and glowering stare.

He pushed open the door

Jason did not expect Charon to wear a bellhop uniform, but the man in green took the weight from the handle as soon as he tried to put pressure on it. 

“Welcome!” He beamed with such energy in zapped Jason out of his strange lull. The rest of the room helped too; it was a bombardment of senses. The room was filled with people talking, running, and--he ducked as an axe flew past his head--trying to kill each other, apparently. The whole room glowed golden, even though there weren't enough windows nor was the weather appropriate. 

The wolf motifs continued on the inside, a wolf head over an enormous fireplace. Maybe the entrance attuned itself to the individual. Still, Jason felt jarringly out of place. His eyes darting across the room, watching for threats or anymore flying weapons. He felt on edge.

More, the strange lobby didn’t feel made for him either. The high ceilings, held up by more towering trees and wooden floors reminded him of Bunker Nine. With this many people bustling around, he wouldn’t be surprised if the next room had the _Argo III._ All the overwhelming energy. It lacked the order of Camp Jupiter, and had a grandeur he hadn’t seen at Camp Half Blood. It didn’t feel like any home to Jason Grace, who had had too many to fit in at one.

But this was where he ended up now. This was it, and he couldn’t complain.

The bellhop tapped his shoulder. “It can be a lot to take in. But you’ll get used to it. Valhalla is a wonderful place to stay until the end of the world.” He smiled as he said the last sentence, as if he was an employee at a normal hotel

“Where?”

The man guided Jason further to the centre of the room, towards a desk that looked like an overturned boat. “Hotel Valhalla!” 

Maybe Pluto had updated the names of some the underworld divisions to make them suit a more modern audience. 

He continued. “This is the warrior’s afterlife. All the heroes of Odin, selected for their brave deaths end up here.”

The name Odin sounded familiar. He was probably some minor god whose name had slipped away from him. Maybe he was one of Pluto’s assistants. He wished he could ask Hazel. Or better yet, Nico.

Another pang of longing struck him. Nico would already know by now. He could be looking for him.

Jason sighed. Thinking about that wasn’t going to help him. Instead, he made a mental note to add Odin to his list of shrines to build. Then he remembered he was dead and wouldn’t be building anymore shrines.

The bellhop had continued rambling as Jason had slipped off into his thoughts, but another voice roused him.

“Hunding,” the other person standing behind the boat desk snapped. He had a name tag that said _Helgi._ “What did I tell you about boring the guests? We’re going to get bad reviews.”

“We have reviews?”

“Did you not attend the briefing last month?” He rubbed his forehead. “I’ll talk to you later. Now, who do we have here?”

“Uh, me? I’m Jason.”

Helgi squinted at the screen. “Right. You took awhile to arrive, so lucky for you, your room is ready to go. You’ve been assigned to floor nineteen. Here are your keys. See you at dinner."

Helgi left to go and yell at someone else

Hunding muttered something.

“What?”

“Don’t worry about him, let’s get you to your room.”

Hunding effortlessly weaved through the people scattered through the lobby. The axe on his hip swung with each step. Jason wondered what it could be for. Maybe he would need his sword after all.

Soon, the pair reached the lift. The doors parted.

“As I was saying, the Hotel is a living space for all of Odin’s chosen warriors,” Hunding said, pressing the buttons that covered every surface of the lift. “People who died performing brave deeds are chosen and live on as einherjar.”

 _Einherjar._ It didn’t sound like Latin, or even Greek.

Jason was beginning to get the feeling he was not supposed to be here.

Hunding didn’t care, remaining almost too calm as he straightened his concierge hat in the reflective walls. 

"That's an interesting shirt you have there."

Jason glanced down. He was still wearing his faded purple Camp Jupiter. The golden Latin letters were barely visible. 

"Thanks," he murmured, too overwhelmed to get much else out

“You’re lucky you’re on floor nineteen,” Hunding said. “It can take almost twenty minutes to get to the upper floors.” He shook his head. “Helgi always finds jobs to do up there.”

Before Jason could offer support, the lift chimed; they had reached their destination.

Hunding hovered in the doorway. “Your new neighbours have been notified of your arrival, they should be waiting for you. Your room is down the hall. It should have your name on it. See you at dinner--I can’t wait to hear of your daring ventures!

He talked so fast Jason barely had time to process his words before the Hunding waved and the doors slid together.

Jason ran his fingers through his hair. So, he was dead. And he was in an unfamiliar place for an indefinite amount of time. He had done this once before, minus the dead part. He’d be fine. 

He turned around, and a blond boy poked his head out of a door.

“Oh. You’re here.”


	2. Here's Jason Grace (now I know who that is)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jason meets the rest of his hall mates--but why does Magnus look so familiar? Maybe he can help him piece together what in the nine worlds is happening

The blond boy stepped out of his room, and quirked an eyebrow. “Jason Grace?”

He was joined by four others filtering out of the doors.

Maybe he had met Jason before. “How do you know my name?”

“It’s written on that door!” The bearded one said. He looked like the oldest of the group, though it was hard to tell. They likely hadn’t aged in a while. 

Jason nodded, but he couldn’t shake off the feeling that he knew this kid from somewhere else. And the boy recognised him. He looked about his age--which meant that he had died at that age. Maybe he saw him at Camp Jupiter. Jason shivered.

One of the other boys smiled. “Welcome to floor nineteen.” He looked about his age--once again, disturbing--and lanky, with dark skin and what looked like a Civil War uniform. “I’m TJ.”

Jason had seen so many new campers over the years. It was jarring to be on the other side of it, uncertain and afraid, new people overwhelming you.

“Cool,” was all he managed to get out in response.

The next person in line was a girl with a mass of red curls. She looked like Rachel Elizabeth Dare, if Rachel Elizabeth Dare could kill him in a single strike. She had multiple knives on her belt. She didn’t offer up a name, but only smiled at him.

Then there was the person clad in vibrant magenta and green, down to their curly green hair. Bits of clay dotted their garish jeans.

“Alex. And I’m a girl, until I tell you otherwise.”

“And I’m Magnus,” the blond boy concluded.

“Jason Grace,” he muttered again. Had he introduced himself? It was too much, he decided, being dead. But now he had friends, who were also dead.

“Great! You’ve met everyone.” Magnus threw his arm around Jason’s shoulder, which was a struggle, being half a foot shorter. “I think it’s best if I show Jason around to his room, and everywhere else. We don’t want him to get killed this early.”

Jason was too dazed to register Magnus’ words

“Rude,” TJ said. “Another new hall mate, and you're going to make me wait until dinner to get to know him. The same as everyone--”

“I think it’s for the best.”

Fake Rachel grinned. “Yesterday you took a wrong turn and almost ended up in Jotunheim.”

“That was one time, Mallory.”

Halfborn chuckled.

“Magnus will be fine, because I’ll accompany the boys on this, uh, tour,” Alex said. “I know my way around the hotel, and won’t get sidetracked in any other worlds. I promise.”

This satisfied Mallory. “Alright, Beantown.”

“Please,  _ don’t call me-- _ ”

But she and Halfborn had disappeared into one of the rooms.

“You’re really going to leave me here?” 

“See you at dinner, TJ,” Alex said.

Magnus grabbed her hand, leaving TJ alone in the hallway. Jason followed them into his new room. 

* * *

Magnus slammed the door behind him.

“Ah, fuck.” He exhaled, before meeting Jason’s eyes. “Hi. You shouldn’t be here.”

“Yes,” Jason exclaimed. “I figured that much.”

Magnus frowned. “You should be dead.”

That was the second time that sentence had been said to him. He thought it was a tad above average.

“I am,” he replied.

The two of them slumped on one of the couches in the centre. Alex waltzed off the explore the room.

Magnus frowned. “I mean, yeah. But I thought the Greeks did things differently.”

So this kid knew who he was, sort of. “I’m Roman, actually.”

“Right.” Magnus’ eyes jumped to Jason’s wrist, where his SPQR tattoo stood out on his skin. Clearly this kid knew about Jason’s world.

Jason rubbed his fingers over the letters and lines. It was the only physical memory of his life left behind--all of his visible scars from years of fighting had been erased. He bit his lip, wondering if the little scar at the edge of his mouth was still there. 

He took a closer look at Magnus, searching for a scrap of recognition. His blond way hair flowed down just above his shoulder. His grey eyes held an intensity he didn’t expect from how relaxed Magnus looked. Looking deep into them scared. He had seen those eyes somewhere else.

“So . . . Do you know who I am?”

Jason tilted. “I think--I mean, I don't know. But you know who I am?”

“Yeah.”

They sat in silence for a moment.

“Annabeth never mentioned me?” That’s where he recognised him--Magnus had the same stormy grey eyes as Annabeth Chase, a stare that sent fear spiraling through him since they met at the Grand Canyon.

“Not even Percy?” Magnus scoffed. “He mentioned  _ you _ , fighting with Kym-Kymo--the sea monster lady?”

Jason blinked. “Really?” That had been the start of it, realising what he wanted to do. It was all over now. 

Annabeth didn’t mention her family often. Jason had to dig around his memory. “Are you one of her brothers?”

“Cousin.” Magnus pursed his lips. “She called me two days ago. About you.”

Jason’s stomach plummeted. They knew already.

“You must have been out for awhile,” Alex jumped in, not taking her eyes off the shelves.

“That tends to happen.”

“Or you had a long journey,” Magnus suggested.

“Depends. Where are we?”

Magnus grimaced. “Well, we’re at the centre of the nine words”--Jason ignored that--“But you probably came through the Midgard entrance, in Boston.”

“Boston? I died in California.”

“That would explain the wait." Alex flipped through some of the books on the shelf. "Is this Latin?"

Jason ignored her. He was too focused on Magnus

“But not _why_ you’re here,” he said.

“How to people normally get here?”

“I’m sure you got the spiel. Chosen by the Valkyrie based on a brave death, all that.”

“So . . . this isn’t the underworld.”

“No, this is Valhalla. Odin’s chosen warriors. But, most of them are connected to the Norse gods.”

“Norse gods.” Jason rested his head in his arms, and sighed.

“Yeah, like I’m a son of Frey, Alex is a daughter of Loki . . .” Magnus pointed behind him.

“TJ is a son of Tyr,” Alex added.

Magnus pursed his lips. “As far as I know, there’s no Greeks or Romans.”

“So can we fix this . . . mistake?”

“Unlikely. Once you’re stuck here, it’s permanent until Ragnarok.”

Jason wasn’t sure being stuck in a hotel of death was his idea of paradise. 

He drummed his fingers on the edge of the couch. “You said Annabeth called you. Can we contact people . . . people from outside?”

Magnus tugged at his necklace, which had a little white rectangle attached to the black string. “You have a new body--one that’s more enhanced. You still physically exist, and can interact with the old world all the same.”

“But?”

Magnus tilted his head. “If you die out there, that’s it. You’ll end up in your underworld, well and truly dead.”

“We can leave? And . . . I can see my friends again?”

Alex grinned. “As long as you don’t get caught.” 

Jason leaped up off the couch. “Do either of you have a phone?” He didn't care about how phones attracted monsters. He needed to talk to them. Now.

Magnus didn’t move. “Communications have been down for months. You could send a raven, but I figure you want something more . . . instant. And even those aren’t consistent lately.”

Jason wondered if he meant a literal raven, but his head already hurt. And for once it wasn't from getting hit with something. He nodded.

“It’s a wonder Annabeth was able to call me at all,” Magnus continued.

“What did she say?”

“Not much. She was in California--I mean, she lives in San Francisco, so. But she told me,” he glanced up and down Jason, “about you.”

Jason didn’t know what to say. 

Luckily, Magnus kept talking. “We’ll figure out how to get in contact with them.” He sighed. “But for now, we’ll have to wait for your Valkyrie. Then we can plan for tonight.”

“What’s tonight?”

“Dinner,” Alex said. A single word had never sounded more ominous. 

“Do you know who picked you up?”

“I don’t remember much from the last few hours.”

“They should turn up before dinner.” Magnus stared at the door, as if expecting someone to instantly burst through it. He sunk deeper into the couch.

Jason stood up. The idea of sitting down and waiting for hours or five minutes made him jittery, like electricity running through him. He didn’t have that patience.

For the first time since Jason had arrived in his new room and Magnus sort of threatened him, Jason took in his surroundings.

The room was different to any place he had stayed before. The sparse furniture made it feel open and relaxed. A pair of couches surrounded a low table in the centre of the room, where he and Magnus sat. On the opposite wall was a small hearth, and on the other wall, the shelves Alex had examined.

Jason shifted across the brown carpet towards his bed, divided from the rest of the room by two small steps.

It was an upgrade from the bunks at either camp; twice as wide and looked far more comfortable, laden in rich purple sheets. 

Above the bed was a collage of photographs, some Jason didn’t know existed. War games at Camp Jupiter, him and Reyna in the praetorial garb, singing at the campfire. A few with the boys at his school. Every one of the monthly meetups of the seven--the seven minus Leo, plus Nico and Reyna. Numerous photos of Leo, Piper and Jason preparing the Argo II, training and making tacos. Most with something on fire in the background.

A few sparse photos--and almost none with Jason--of a girl will choppy black hair and crisp blue eyes that said  _ I can and will kill you _ .

“Who’s that?”

Jason nearly jumped--Alex had slipped behind him while he had been entranced in his memories.

“That’s my sister. Thalia.”

He brushed his thumb over the picture. Two siblings, immortalised until battle. Their shared fate was almost comical, but it didn’t appease the desperation Jason felt to see her again.

He would. He would make sure of it.

He turned away from the wall. Staring at the people he missed wasn’t going to help him. 

Opposite the bed was an old wooden desk; something that would be unsurprising, but what was on it surprised Jason.

Spread across the top was all of his work from the last few months. All of his designs, his models, his dreams laying in front of him.

He could keep going. Jason almost smiled. 

“And this?” Alex asked.

“I was designing shrines for all the forgotten gods. Gods who didn’t have anything to commemorate them.”

Alex tapped her chin. “Are you planning to add the Norse ones to that list?” She smiled. “You’ll have plenty of time now.”

She was trying to be funny, but it only reminded Jason of his situation. The thoughts were constantly cycling in his head anyway. He was dead, and out of place again. 

Jason sat back down on the couch, hardly aware of the steps he took to get there. The softness grounded him.

All he could do was wait.

As soon as he relaxed his muscles, a knock resounded from the door. He turned his head.

Magnus was already up, striding towards the door. “That should be our Valkyrie.” He stretched his arms. “Let’s see who you’ve got.”

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi! hope you enjoyed.
> 
> quick question--where would you like to see this go? I know a lot of the Jason in Valhalla fics died after the intro and I would like to keep this up for a little while. I want there to be some sort of quest, but would you be interested in following the rest of TOA, sort of accompanying tower of Nero? or something else? I don't really have a plan at the moment
> 
> let me know your preference or any ideas!


	3. Who gave this fourteen year old a knife?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if you were expecting someone familiar as the Valkyrie. get ready for some original characters. hope you like her as much as I do.
> 
> I was expecting this chapter to be way shorter, but got carried away with all the banter. 
> 
> anyway enjoy!

The door swung open, almost hitting Magnus in the face if he hadn’t stumbled back in time.

“Oh gods, sorry I’m late!”

A girl burst through the door. She looked about twelve. Her silvery short hair glowed against her brown skin. Circular glasses overshadowed her small, round face. She was dressed in shades of grey. If it weren’t for the orange scarf around her neck, she could have passed for one of the hunters of Artemis.

“About time!” Magnus scoffed. He peered around the door. His jaw dropped. “No way. Cyra?”

The girl scowled. “Look who it is. Of course you’ve already befriended my newest chosen.”

“We’re on the same floor. It’s not that much of a surprise. But what took you so long?”

“I was taking a nap. Do you know how much of an effort it is to fly from California? I needed a rest. Not to mention, this one took forever to heal. ” She leaped over the back of the couch and flopped next to Jason, a feat that she made look effortless.

“I was wondering why you weren’t her to greet him when he arrived.” Magnus shook his head. “Of all the Valkyries in Valhalla, you picked up Jason Grace?”

She smirked. “Aren’t you proud of me?”

“Why did it have to be you?”

“Because it’s my job?”

“Well, you fucked up more than usual, because Jason Grace is not supposed to be here.”

Jason clenched his shoulders, trying to make himself smaller. He didn’t want to get in between these two.

Cyra laced her fingers together. “What makes you say that?”

“He’s supposed to be in the underworld.”

She raised an eyebrow, her wide eyes amplified by her even wider glasses. “The where?”

“Different afterlife. You chose someone who shouldn’t have been chosen.”

She shrugged. “And you weren’t the same?”

“That was a prophecy. It was actually about _Loki_ choosing me.”

“Details,” she scoffed. “You should still be in Folkvanger.” 

He couldn’t take it anymore. “I’m sorry--who is this?” Jason interrupted.

They both turned to him, as if they forgot he was next to them.

Magnus sighed. “This is Cyra. Resident of floor nineteen, and by some luck, your Valkyrie.”

“What is your issue, Chase?”

“Jason Grace is the son of Jupiter.”

“So it’s not a big name, or someone super popular--no big deal. Just you wait--”

“Jupiter is a Greek god, Cyra,” Magnus said, deadpan.

“Roman,” Jason corrected.

“Oh." She paused for a moment. "Why is that a problem?”

Magnus rubbed his forehead. “That’s a different pantheon. He’s supposed to end up in a different afterlife.”

“Right!” She threw an arm around Jason. Or at least she tried to, and gave up, being a foot shorter. “No one will notice. I’m sure there’s been chosen warriors from other cultures before. There’s probably at least Norse guy that’s stuck in the Underplace with no clue of how they got there and no Valkyrie to guide them. ” She smiled. “We’ll be fine.”

That did not sound fine to Jason. The hair on the back of his neck stood up. What if there was another swap, even if this one was accidental? Was the queen of the Norse gods the kind of person to mess around like that? 

“And if there is a mistake . . . would I leave Valhalla?”

“No, you’ll just get a shitty job for the next century.” Her expression looked a tad nervous, before melting back into excitement. “But that’s not going to happen. You, Jason Grace are one of the most powerful people I’ve seen, and that was before you died. I finally have a chance to prove myself.”

Magnus snorted.

Jason ignored him. The two had some kind of feud he didn’t want to deal with. He had dinner to focus on. “Are you a fairly new Valkyrie?”

“No, I’ve been here for centuries, became a Valkyrie a little while after I died. I made a really good selection back in the 1700s, and that basically kept my job for awhile. But that fame has kind of faded. They don’t keep track of the passage of time very well here, and . . . overlook my recent endeavours.”

“Which are?”

“Not much!” she exclaimed, throwing her hands out. “That’s the issue. I’m not being noticed. I mean, I’m still choosing people, just no one that catches attention. I’ve just been fairly under the radar. Until you came along!”

“Right . . .”

She ignored his uncertainty. “Ever since Sam left, there’s been an opening for a Valkyrie captain. Do you know how boring it is here? All everyone does is kill each other. It gets tiresome after the first three hundred years. With a promotion, I could _do_ something, you know?”

“As if they’re going to choose a twelve year old for captain of the Valkyries,” Magnus said.

“I’m fourteen and about four hundred years which you _know_ , Chase. I might not have been here as long as the other Valkyries, and I might be the youngest there, but that doesn’t mean I am any less worthy than them. And if you mess this up for me, I will not let you forget it for a millenia.”

Magnus frowned at the dagger at her hip. 

She stood up, her hands pressed together. “This is what is going to happen. We are going to go to dinner. Jason and I will recount his adventures. He will claim no parentage and we will see what the runes say. Then we will meet back here to discuss where to go from there.”

It felt strange to be threatened by a girl who looked twelve, but Jason was happy to agree. His days of being a leader were over; he was in the backseat now, trying to draw as little attention as possible. 

“Am I included in this?” Alex asked. She leaned against the wall, detached from the trio, as if she was just intrigued to watch all the shit go down.

“Of course,” Cyra replied. She smiled, all of the bitterness she had towards Magnus had evaporated.

“If you aren’t worried about Jason being Roman, why are you doing all this planning?” Magnus said.

She folded her arms. “I’m taking precautions so that you don’t mess things up. So, are we clear?”

“Let’s get this over with then.”

Cyra had already moved on to doing a dramatic reenactment of Jason’s death.“You should have seen him, he had all this lightning, and there was a cloud horse--oh, just wait for you to see the Valkyrie vision.” She was almost leaping across the room. Cyra was still a fourteen year old at heart.

Magnus shook his head. “Haven’t we had enough issues with that? And his achievements don’t change the fact that he’s Roman.”

“Shhh,” she said, and pushed her glasses up her face. “You need to stop being bitter, sunshine. What’s the worst that’s going to happen?”

“Norns,” he grumbled. “Norns are the worst thing that could happen?”

“What is a norn?”

Cyra smiled. “It’s not important. All that matters is you looking confident as all of the einherjar watch your brave deeds.” She patted his back. “You don’t need to worry.”

The sentiment was useless; Jason was worrying, the same inescapable cycle of thought running through his head.

He reached for his gold rimmed glasses. Living out of focus for a few moments was a good way to escape when things were overwhelming.

But his fingers never grazed the metal. He checked again, and almost poked himself in the eye. His glasses were missing. Somewhere, between the boat, flying across the US, the courtyard and his room, they had fallen off. 

The environment suddenly seemed aggressive, too bright, too loud, too saturated. Everything was changing as the realisations sunk in. He was dead, yet in a body that lacked the small reminders of himself. He wouldn’t age, but watch his friends' lives shape in front of him. He was trapped in another place he didn’t belong.

And he had lost his glasses.

Jason’s knees wobbled below him, and his vision blacked out.

His eyes opened to the sight of Magnus Chase in his face, his hands on Jason’s chest.

He stood up. “Are you alright?”

Jason pushed himself up. He sat on the couch, which he hadn’t been before. His sight was still hazy. He rubbed his eyes as feeling returned to his body. He felt weirdly invigorated, better than he had been all day. A quick fix, like he had drank nectar and it hadn’t completely taken effect yet.

“Did you do something?”

Magnus ran a hand through his hair. “I healed you. Did it work?”

“Sort of.” Jason blinked. “It’s just . . . strange.”

“Don’t worry,” Magnus said. “You’re going to get used to it.”

While Magnus’ words were ambiguous, they still comforted Jason. He didn’t think he was talking about the healing, but Jason’s other troubles. Somehow, he understood.

“Who are you the son of, again?”

“Frey,” Magnus stammered. “God of Summer, sunshine, peace and rain.”

“Can all the sun gods heal people?”

Cyra laughed.

“I don’t know enough others to be able to answer that.”

Cyra grabbed his hand. “Are you alright to get up?”

“Yeah.” Jason stretched his arms, feeling bubbles of electricity course through him as his bones cracked.

“Good.” She adjusted her glasses. “We have a dinner to get to.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you liked Cyra. her name might change as her backstory is pieced together. even though I only created her less than a week ago, I love her!
> 
> anyone want to guess who her godly parent is? she is a Norse demigod, so that should limit you enough
> 
> hope you're enjoying the intro chapters. I'm just procrastinating writing a prophecy


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally, Jason gets to this dinner people are talking about. But it seems Jason's parentage is not the only surprise of the night.
> 
> longer chapter than usual. enjoy

Cyra and Magnus guided Jason to dinner. On the way, they bumped into TJ.

“Hello again, Jason! I can’t wait to see your heroic exploits at dinner.” He smiled. “Do you know anything about your parents?"

“Some norse deity, I’m sure we’ll find out soon!” Magnus yelled before Jason could open his mouth. Magnus picked up his pace, striding infront of TJ.

Cyra followed, pulling Jason along. “Sorry TJ, I really don’t want to be late. See you at training!”

Jason saw TJ’s face fall as they ran off. Alex waved back to him.

She leaped into the elevator and shut the door. The four stood as soft jazz music played.

Jason wanted to say something, but didn’t know where to start. He wanted to know what was so important about dinner, why everyone was planning and excited.

The elevator chimed before he could ask. Cyra grabbed his hand. “Here we go.”

Nothing could have prepared Jason for the scene behind those doors. 

The cacophony of noise from thousands of people welcomed him into the hall. He thought the senate house was big, but it could not compare to the Feast Hall of the Slain. There were tiers of tables that circled the large tree in the centre, lake around its roots. Valkyries flew above him, carrying trays of food and drinks. Thousands of warriors hovered about, talking and eating. Too much, but he couldn’t pass out again. 

“We have to go up there.” Cyra pointed to a long table opposite them. Jason spotted Helgi in the centre, next to other dignified looking people. She turned to Alex. “See you after dinner.”

“I can--” Jason started, but Cyra lifted off him the ground. The two soared above the tables and warriors and the other Valkyries. They darted in between the lower branches of the tree, past all sorts of animals in the tree. She dropped him at the table beside what must be the most prestigious hotel staff . Cyra fluttered down beside him

Jason ran his fingers through his hair. “Valkyries can fly.”

“Sorry. I should have warned you. I sometimes get caught up in the exhilaration of it. There’s nothing like flying.”

“Yeah,” Jason replied. He decided it was best not to elaborate. High above the tables, he felt like he was back at the grand canyon; overlooking a cliff and wondering what the heck was happening.

They received their meals. It was some of the best food Jason had had in awhile, but he was too nervous to focus on it. Everyone had mentioned seeing his brave achievements--was that what dinner was for? In front of all these people. Jason didn't want to dwell on it.

Cyra chatted to the two other valkyries. Their two companions, a girl and a guy a bit older than Jason, looked uncomfortable too.

He just had to not draw too much attention.

Soon, Helgi rose from the tables.

“Those are the thanes,” Cyra muttered.”They will determine if you are worthy of your place here.”

“We will now view the brave feats of today's chosen, beginning with Aurelie Myer.”

The crowd below cheered.

Multiple screens surrounding the tree illuminated. It played a shaky video of the girl sitting next to Jason as she fought some kind of monster. He wasn’t really paying attention. The thought of having to relive those moments in full view occupied him. He didn’t want to go through that again, seeing her face full of fear, and _knowing,_ that was the end.

Now and then, Cyra let out a ‘hmm’ or shout of encouragement.

The screens blacked out. 

The Thanes talked back and forth for a bit, before Helgi spoke. “Aurelie, the Thanes find you worthy of Valhalla!”

The sound of thousands of hands clapping drummed on Jason’s ears. Cyra hi-fived the other Valkyrie.

“Do you know much about your parentage?”

The girl shook her head.

A woman on the other end of the table rose.

“That’s the vala,” Cyra said. “She’ll cast the runes to see who your parents are. Listen to her, and we’ll be all good.”

The woman procured a small bag, and withdrew small stone rectangles. She threw them in the air. They fell like snowflakes, before clattering on the floor. The screens displayed the symbols, focused on one in particular--a single line, like a capital i.

“Skadi!” The vala boomed. “Goddess of hunting, skiing and winter. You will get stabbed some time this week.”

The hall cheered.

Next was Stig Vellar, the boy with dark hair. Things occurred in a similar fashion, the video played, the Thanes accepted it. Until Stig decided he didn't share Jason's resolution to go unnoticed.

“And your parents? Do you know them”

“Yes,” Stig said. His face was carefully neutral. Everyone in the hall hung on to his every word. “I am the son of Holler.”

The hall fell into mayhem, a mix of confusion and yelling. His Valkyrie covered her mouth.

“I don’t even know who Holler _is,”_ Cyra muttered.

“Now, I know my father doesn’t have the best reputation . . . but I am not him. My parentage does not define me, and my loyalty lies with Odin.”

“Elida,” Helgi said. The Valkyrie stiffened. “Were you aware of Stig’s parentage before he was chosen?”

“I had no idea!” She stammered. “But . . . but you saw the video. He deserves to be here.”

He laced his hands together. “You believe the child of Holler, the god of disease and destruction deserves to be in Valhalla?” 

Jason decided he hated the crowd in the hall; they amplified every moment, whether tense or joyous.

“Yes,” she replied, her stare firm. “I stand by my choice.”

“Very well,” Helgi said, not sounding as though he accepted the outcome at all. The atmosphere was still tense, which made it the _perfect_ time for Jason’s turn.

“Next . . .Jason Grace.” Helgi clapped his hands together. Any displeasure he had had vanished. “Let us witness your wondrous deeds!”

The screen illuminated again, and the video played. Jason’s stomach dropped as he saw Caligula’s throne room again--how did Cyra get in there anyway? 

The room was in chaos, Caligula and Medea arguing after Apollo stabbed himself. Jason and Meg were trapped in the tornado cages. Piper lay on the floor next to Crest, the young Pandai. Jason sucked in a breath. Why did he have to see these moments replayed?

Then, he released the twisting wind cages. They burst free, spiraling away from him before splitting the boat. The impact threw Mag backwards, but Jason didn’t focus on that. He stepped forward through the smoke and water filtering in, golden sword in his hand, glowing in the night.

The sky crackled with thunder. People in the hall cheered.

Jason and Caligula fought, spear to sword. Piper yelled something, but it was no more intelligible than the first time Jason heard it.

He couldn’t watch this.

An arrow hit his arm, and Jason stumbled back. A flash of lightning streaked through the sky.

He mounted Tempest, his horse ventus, reaching for Caligula again. The two horses put up just as much as a fight. More arrows impaled Jason.

For a fraction of a second, video Jason turned. Real Jason closed his eyes, but the bellowing voice still remained.

“Go! Remember!”

Jason knew how it ended.

When he opened his eyes, all the screens were blank.

“Right. Thank you, Jason,” Helgi said, but Jason barely heard the words. “Your actions were by no doubt impressive, but--”

“Jason sacrificed himself to save his friends," Cyra interrupted. “His skills with the sword and the storm were incredible.”

“I could see that, Cyra,” he said, his voice patronising, “but the situation was a little unclear. What exactly was happening?”

“Well--”

Every eye in the room turned to Jason. Including Cyra, who gave him a harsh stare. _Don’t say too much._

His confidence left him. “Um . . . my friends were trying to escape from this guy . . . because he had taken me and uh, the girl you saw . . .” Jason wasn’t sure how he could avoid mentioning how he was supposed to explain he was fighting a Roman emperor that was supposed to be dead, who was trying to become the new sun god. “And then the boat fell apart . . .”

Cyra continued for him. “It doesn’t matter. He died a brave death, saving others. He bought them time to escape.”

Helgi sighed. “The Thanes find Jason Grace worthy of Valhalla.” A cheer rippled through the crowd. “Jason, do you know anything about your parentage?”

He tensed. “Um . . . no.” Helgi, on the other hand, relaxed, glad that he didn't have another child of destruction on his hands.

The Vala stood once again, and threw the runes at her feet. She frowned.

“The runes . . . are uncertain!”

The suspense in the room dissipated. A room filled with thousands of people, and not a sound besides the incessant beating inside Jason’s head.

“Uh oh,” Cyra muttered.

“What does that mean?” Jason whispered back.

She fiddled with a piece of her hair. “Well, that’s not really how runes work.”

One of the thanes stood. “What does this mean? Does Jason have multiple options for parents?”

The vala shook her head. “Something else entirely.” She held up a stone rectangle, the image amplified by the screen above her. On it was a scribble that looked like a _C_ if it had been squashed. “The _perthro_ rune denotes uncertainty. Today, it doesn't connect to a specfic god, but an uncertain outcome. I cannot figure out who Jason’s parents are at this stage.”

A ripple of chatter went through the hall.

Magnus had mentioned the communication struggles had affected him too--could that trickle down all the way the their runes. Unfortunately, Jason had no idea how runes worked, so it became something else to overthink about.

“There may be some sort of interruption to the runes,” She continued

“Are his parents mortal?” Helgi asked.

One of the thanes laughed. “A mortal can’t wield lightning or wind like that.” They were quickly elbowed into silence.

“No. This suggests that there are no ways through the runes to describe Jason’s parentage. He is no doubt a descendant of a god, but which one, I cannot say.”

Another thane raised their hand. “Back to the lightning . . . that would suggest a son of Thor.” 

A cheer erupted through the hall.

“It is possible. But I cannot know for sure.”

“Right. Are there any other predictions made through the runes?”

The vala squinted. “Well--”

The woman was interrupted by a noise from the lake amidst the roots of Læraðr. The hall quieted again, watching as three figures in white rose from the dark water. As they approached, the air seemed to shift colder, a slight chill that unnerved Jason. 

It had no effect to quell Cyra’s excitement. She leaned over the edge of the table, not concerned about falling a hundred metres down towards Yggdrasil. “Oh Gods, the norns are here! None have my chosen have gotten the norns. I knew you were special.”

“Didn’t Magnus say norns were bad?”

Cyra folded her arms. “Magnus doesn’t know anything.”

Jason stared at the figures approaching. The sight of them made his mouth dry. “What’s a norn?”

“They’re women who recite prophecies and control the fate of all beings.” She tapped her fingers on the edge of the cup. The excitement spilled out of her in the form of restless energy.

Guess the one consistent thing in all pantheons was three old ladies who control how you die, Jason thought. He wasn’t sure this aspect of familiarity was comforting. 

A wave of fog obscured their feet, so the Norns appeared to float over to the table. Under their hoods, their faces were like statues--emotionless and ominous. Soon they loomed inhumanly tall--about nine feet.

Every part of Jason screamed as him to grab his sword and attack. But he sat still, fist clenched, trying to breathe.

 _Jason Grace,_ one of them whispered. He didn’t see any of their mouths moving, they seemed to speak from inside his head. 

Then, their voices overlapped into a terrifying chorus.

_Child of thunder, journey south_

_Golden guide to serpents mouth_

_Three sides join, enemies connect_

_Rise with the tower, see the sun set_

The women faded back into the fog. The volume in the room reached its peak.

Jason’s hands trembled. Another prophecy. He had barely heard the words, but the thought of another quest terrified him.

For once, Cyra sat in silence, shocked. 

Helgi held up a hand and the room quietened. Jason thought the teachers at his boarding school could learn a thing from this guy. “What a night it has been! Jason Grace, you are a strange one. Your future is uncertain, but you will join the rest of the warriors. The Thanes will discuss the best way forward as a result of this prophecy. Until then, rest well for tomorrow's training!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hhhhh this chapter was an effort to write. I don't know why, I just didn't enjoy it as much. it felt like too much of a Magnus chase retelling, and kind of boring. but it needed to happen.
> 
> Stig was fun to write though, for 200 words. He was added super last minute, about an hour before posting.  
> Resources on Holler are pretty limited, but he did appear in 9 from the 9 worlds, so I'll do my best
> 
> coming up with a prophecy was a struggle. This one is very general, and might change. If it does i'll add it to the notes in the most recent chapter.
> 
> uhh hope you enjoyed!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group reconvenes. Jason has dreams. and breakfast

Cyra shut the door of Jason’s room. “Well, that didn’t go too bad.”

Jason collapsed on his bed. Compared to the hall, his room was dead. The sparse decorations relaxed him. The vibrant purple still wasn’t as garish as all the people and lights. He felt the most at ease he had all day, despite the arguing beside him. 

“Are you serious? The Norns showed up.” Magnus rubbed the bridge of his nose. “What did I say about Norns?”

“You didn’t say much, actually, because I told you to shut up.”

“Maybe you should listen to me more.”

Cyra rolled her eyes. “I’ll listen to you after you’ve been here 400 years, sunshine.”

Jason needed to go to sleep, but his new friends seemed to be determined to keep him busy. He stared at the ceiling--which wasn’t a ceiling, but an open sky. Thick clouds obscured the stars, but didn’t affect the brightness of the room.

“You get used to it.”

Jason looked up. Alex sat down beside him. From here, Jason could see her eyes, which were two different colours He also spotted as a tattoo on her neck. The tattoo had a pair of snakes entwined. He wondered if she had had it before Valhalla, like his tattoo. He touched the edge of his lip again. 

“What?”

“Them. Usually, they avoid each other, but floor nineteen is only so small. And you brought them together again.”

“Sorry.”

Alex shook her head.“No, it’s fine. Maybe they’ll finally realise the other isn’t that terrible. If not, they’re entertaining.” She smiled.

“Why don’t they get along?”

“Because they’re idiots. It’s also a long story.” 

Jason stared at them.

Magnus sighed. “Prophecies are never good. This is what we wanted to avoid.”

Cyra paced around the room. “We’ll figure it out. We’ll go on a quest--”

“No more quests. I’ve had enough of quests.” Jason understood that sentiment. 

“ _I_ haven’t,” Cyra drawled

“Cyra missed out on the big floor nineteen boat trip because of Valkyrie business,” Alex murmured. “She’s a little salty about it.”

“Quest or not, Jason got too much attention from the prophecy. What happened to lying low?”

“It’s all good. The son of Holler overshadowed him. An obscure god that also represents death and destruction?” Cyra grimaced. “He is not going to have an easy time here.”

Jason frowned. “Didn’t you say you didn’t know him?” That made him a candidate for Jason's project. Building a shrine for a god of destruction and death would be a challenge, but he had plenty of time. 

“I actually met Holler,” Alex piped up. “When I ended up in Muspelheim a couple weeks ago. He, Surt and some other minor gods were discussing Ragnarok plans.”

“Does everything here revolve around Ragnarok?” Jason asked.

“Basically. My point is, you can’t blame Stig for who his parents are. Sam and I had the same problem. We give him a chance.”

“And if we’re wrong?”

She tapped her chin. “We stopped Ragnarok once.”

Magnus groaned.

“Alex is right. He earned his place here, and I trust my colleague's judgement.”

“Cool. We solved an issue that’s irrelevant for now. Can we talk about how the Vala couldn’t figure out his parents? I’ve never seen that."

“Fine. That was odd. That hasn't happened in 400 years. Can’t say much about before then.”

“You said there were communication issues . . . " Jason said. "Could that affect the runes?”

“There hasn't been issues so far. I’m not an expert . . . .” Magnus' eyes lit up. “But I know someone who is. Of course!” He waved a finger in the air. “That’s what the rune meant.”

“Slow down sunshine. What is it?”

“The _perthro_ rune--that’s Hearth’s favourite. We have to find him. He’ll be able to help us with the prophecy.”

Cyra quirked an eyebrow. “He has a favourite rune?”

“Is that a thing that most rune magicians have?”

“How am I supposed to know?”

“Maybe because you’re always saying how much longer you’ve been here--”

Jason’s fist clenched. “Let’s focus,” he said, equal parts calm and threatening.

The sky above rumbled. 

He didn’t move his head from looking upward. “Dinner happened. Now what?”

Cyra adjusted her glasses. “We lie low for awhile. Magnus is right--”

“Ha!”

She glared at him. “Prophecies are noticeable, whether positive or negative. People are going to notice Jason Grace, and while it is exciting, since you’re Roman, it’s not what we want.” She shook her head. “And then later I’ll be able to prove myself.”

Magnus rolled his eyes. “Valkyrie captain is not going to happen.”

“I need to show them. You saw tonight--they treat me like a child.”

“You are a child.”

“Sort of,” she muttered. “Whatever. We’ll pretend you’re a son of Thor until the Thanes come up with something concrete.”

“So can I go to sleep now?”

“I guess,” Cyra said. “See you at breakfast.”

“Will I have to relive my death again there?”

She laughed. “Goodnight, Jason Grace. I hope I don’t regret choosing you.”

She turned off the light, and the darkness enveloped him.

The peace didn’t last. Inevitably, Jason dreamed.

He found himself in a dark room, lit poorly by candles on the sides. The room was small and constricting. The walls swallowed most of the sound. Jason hid behind a lounge of some sort. He peered overhead.

Two men sat either side of each other at a dark wood table. One was aged, with a haggard face and grey hair. He was dressed in a purple suit.

The other was dressed more simply in a black sweater, but seemed to radiate danger. Dark circles hung under his eyes. The only colour on his was his dark, reddish brown hair, and a gold earring on his left ear.

The two were in a deep conversation.

“About that. An interesting turn of events has occurred,” the man with the earring drawled, tracing his fingers along the table. “A name that you mentioned earlier came up. Jason Grace.” 

Jason tensed. 

The other man frowned.“As a guest? I didn’t think that would have been possible.”

“Our meeting should not have been possible. Unexpected lines have been crossed, opening new doors for all the worlds.” All the worlds. This man, if not both, had a connection to the Norse world

“Is he likely to interfere?”

“Precautions have been taken. We will do our best to monitor the situation.”

“And that changes?”

The man shrugged. “Then he’s in your domain, correct?"

The man in purple laughed. "He won't get that far."

Jason’s vision blurred. The pair faded, the walls opened to a field of some kind. Someone laughed beside him. His shoes were scuffed, covered in dirt.

He stretched his fingers out, seeing that they were covered in bright red liquid, shining in the sunlight--

He blinked, his surroundings shifting again.

 _Look around, Jason Grace,_ a strange voice spoke. It was somehow familiar, but a whisper like no other. _From up here, you can see everything._

He did a 360 scan of the view. Jason found himself overlooking a towering city. Despite this, where he stood was taller, though he couldn’t see the building his feet were on--somehow his mind had ignored it. He couldn’t draw any features of it from his memory. It was _there,_ he just couldn't describe it

Roads and buildings laid out in twisting glory. It felt like a city made for him. From this distance, it looked small enough to clutch in his hand, and large enough to swallow him whole. It glowed, the sky awash with orange. 

It wasn’t LA. He would have recognised the view. But a few landmarks sprouted from his memory. Central Park. The Empire State building. This was New York. South of Boston, south enough for the child of thunder. 

He stumbled and tethered off where he stood. Jason spiraled towards the ground below. Cars and people came into view, unfazed by the boy falling from the sky.

He tried to call the winds to catch himself, but they didn’t respond, slipping through his fingertips. 

_You better wake up_. A different voice, no less strange.

“What?” he yelled, the sound absorbed by the rushing air.

_Wake up._

Jason felt his palms graze the pavement--

And opened his eyes to sunlight streaming through the open ceiling. 

His breathing slowed back to normal as he felt the mattress against his back. For once in Valhalla, everything was calm.

Too calm.

Jason stretched his arms and swung out of his bed. He wondered how long he had slept in. What was the time? Did time exist in this place? Not something to dwell on.

He sauntered to the closet beside his bed. Like the front door, the handles were metal molded into wolves heads. The whole room seemed made for him; but were these wolves a Valhalla thing or a Jason thing?

He pulled open the doors.

The clothes weren’t surprising, with the exception of the luminous green shirts folded into a little stack. Each was printed with the hotel’s logo.

Jason ran his fingers over the fabric. He needed to blend in, but the idea of wearing it felt wrong. He wished he had his Camp Jupiter shirt, something familiar, but there weren’t any other options other than the clothes he arrived in.

Gods. He couldn’t believe he died in his school uniform. 

He pulled the shirt over his head, but layers a jacket over the top. The less he had to look at it, the better.

He tucked his coin into his pocket, and left his room to find Magnus and the others. 

He headed in the direction of the lift. Would breakfast be as big a deal as dinner? Jason wasn’t sure if he could face that hall again.

“Over here!”

Jason turned. His hall mates were clustered around a table in a large alcove. Beside them on a long counter was a variety of breakfast foods. The lighting was soft and warm.

Jason grabbed a plate of toast and eggs and sat down.

“Have a good sleep?” TJ asked.

“Hmm,” was all that Jason could reply.

TJ kept chatting. “I mean, that was an interesting night. A prophecy . . . confused runes . . .”

Magnus almost choked on his food.

“Are you ready for training? You looked like you were pretty familiar with fighting based on the video last night.”

Jason suppressed a smile. He wondered if his fighting style would give him away, like it did the first time. 

Jason took a better look at his new hall mates. All of them were his age. He noticed a definite coupled dynamic; with Alex and Magnus, and Mallory and Halfborn.

Meanwhile, TJ munched on his toast. 

He couldn’t help but think of Piper. He hoped she was ok, that he would be able to talk to her soon without shocking her too much. He just had to wait a little longer.

Cyra waltzed into the lounge. 

“You’re late again,” Magnus said.

“There’s no such thing as being late to breakfast,” she snapped. She filled up a glass with apple juice and grabbed a bagel “Plus, there was a Valkyrie meeting.” Cyra fluttered into the seat beside TJ.

TJ frowned. “This early in the day?”

She sighed.“Elida’s on probation after last night.”

“Who?” Halfborn said.

“The Valkyrie who brought in Stig. The Thanes aren’t happy with her choice.”

Mallory looked up from her food. “Speaking of the son of Holler . . . here he comes now.”

Jason turned. Sure enough, the tall, dark haired boy had wandered into the floor 19 lounge, looking uncertain.

“Can I join you for breakfast?”

“Sure,” Alex replied.

Jason shifted down the bench to make room.

“Didn’t want to sit with your own floor?” Mallory asked, with just enough bitterness to go unnoticed by Stig. Alex elbowed her.

“Not really. I don’t think they like me.” 

That silenced the table.

“So I wanted to find Jason, since we were both new,” Stig said, slicing up his pancakes. 

“Well, it’s good to meet you,” TJ said. Stig nodded. 

“What do we do now that we're dead?”

“Training. We fight, we die, we resurrect, have dinner and do it all again.”

Halfborn smiled. “What a life!”

“Right,” Stig replied.

“Everyone will one to kill you,” Halfborn continued. “They’ve either never heard of Holler or they don’t like Holler.”

“I mean, that’s understandable,” he muttered. “I don’t like Holler either.”

“They’ll still try to kill you. But one day . . . you kill them.”

This did not look like it comforted Stig.

“This training . . . is it like war games?” Jason asked. That he could handle. He hadn’t done Camp Jupiter war games since . . . too long.

“I guess.” TJ shrugged. “We fight each other, along with monsters the staff feel like adding.

“Thursdays are dragons,” Mallory said. “But Wednesday . . . Wednesday is the surprise day.”

“What happens on Wednesdays?”

She grinned. “No way to know.”

A horn bellowed around them.

Halfborn rose from his chair. “That would be our cue. Let’s see what you can do, Grace.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you enjoyed!
> 
> also,,, would it be ok if I changed the perspective to first person? (I, me, instead of he, him) I started 3rd person for a challenge but I forgot how much I hated it . . . plus I want to make this feel more like the og series (because I might have plans after this :)
> 
> Obviously I would edit the previous chapters to fit with the new perspective. but uh let me know!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> why do I feel like the only character I can properly write is Jack :(
> 
> decided to keep it 3rd person :)
> 
> enjoy!

Jason’s hall mates dragged him away from the table--to the battle field. He wasn’t sure how a battlefield could fit into the hotel, but things like that stopped playing by the rules when he arrived at Camp Jupiter. 

He tried to keep his bearings, but there were too many turns and doors for him to keep up with. He would get lost in this hotel _way_ before Ragnarok.

Somewhere along the way, Stig vanished. Jason hoped he would find his own floor. He wanted Stig to feel comfortable here, and do what he could to help that, but Jason couldn’t deny it; the guy made him nervous, for some reason he couldn’t explain.

They approached a door that towered over Jason, twice his height. The edges were gilded, with wood carvings of weapons and wolves.

“Norse people really like wolves,” he muttered.

“You have no idea,” Magnus replied.

The door opened and they spilled into an expansive field, filled with thousands of people. All ages, appearances, the only common trait was some kind of weapon. The space could have fit half of New Rome. The sides were layered balconies, laden with catapults and other interesting weapons. The area confined a variety of landscapes; sweeping hills and jagged cliffs, dense forests, a swollen river and what looked like a small village.

It was unlike any battle Jason had seen, and it was all for fun.

Electricity seemed to crackle under his skin. He could test his limits here. There wasn’t the fear of impending failure, or risk of death.

“So anyone we kill . . .”

“Will resurrect in time for dinner,” Magnus replied. “As will you. Einherji love to kill new people, so don’t be sad if you don’t last long.”

Magnus pulled at the little runestone chain on his neck. It morphed into a glowing, golden sword that bobbed in the air next to him.

“Who’s this?”

Jason was pretty sure the sound had come from the sword, but he was also pretty sure that swords generally didn’t talk.

“That’s Jason,” Magnus said, deadpan. “And that’s Jack.”

“Your sword has a name. And talks.”

Magnus shrugged

The sword--Jack, apparently--glowed brighter. “The best swords do, senor--which is why I need to see yours.”

Magnus glanced at Jason, his eyes wide as if just struck with a realisation. “Shit, I should have lent you something. There’s not a lot of time before--”

“All good . . . I think he’s talking about this.” Jason fished though his pocket and pulled out his gold coin.

Jack nodded, as much as a sword can nod. “Exactly!”

Magnus frowned. “Jack, it’s a coin.”

The sword hovered closer to Jason. “Isn’t it wonderful? Show them what it can do, Jason.”

He wasn’t sure how the sword knew, but Jason flipped it into the air. It landed in his palm, before molding into a golden gladius.

“Heads it is,” he said.

“Whoa.” Alex studied it. “That’s a cool disguise. And if it lands tails?”

“A javelin.”

Jack buzzed with excitement, Jason assumed. “That’s the coolest weapon I’ve seen. A coin is an excellent way to store a weapon. Why didn’t you think of that?”

“We are not having this conversation again.”

“Do they have a name?”

Jason waved it around. “Not that I know of.”

“Hmm. You should get Magnus to give them a name, since he came up with mine.  _ Sumarbrander _ is a little too formal, see--”

“I think we’re a little preoccupied at the moment, Jack.”

“So, we’ll brainstorm later?”

Magnus ignored him. “Since it’s a Monday, I don’t know what they’re going to throw at us. All sorts of monsters, none at all. Just be prepared.”

“No dragons though,” Alex said. “Dragons are Thursdays.”

Another horn blasted through the battlefield, and thousands of warriors charged towards the centre.

Jason’s feet pounded against the grass. He trailed just behind his group, letting them guide him into the fight while he protected the back.

He ducked as an axe flew past him. The thrower looked mildly angry about missing, before someone stabbed her in the chest. She laughed, and collapsed.

Jason kept running.

He followed the group as they shifted into a clump of trees, somewhat obscured from others' sight.

Somewhat, he thought as an arrow dart by his ear.

Long green snakes emerged in the grass. 

“Basilisks,” he said. His hand tightened on his sword. “I hate basilisks.”

The fifth cohort always seemed to get the job of keeping away basilisks. While they were scared of weasels, the Romans didn’t have weasels. They didn’t need any, they said, despite all the basilisks

Jason didn’t think Valhalla had any weasels.

“These are a Roman thing,” he hissed to Magnus. “I don’t think they should be here.”

“Definitely not!” Magnus yelled back. “Even for a Monday!”

Were the basilisks a warning, a fragment of Jason’s past to remind him he shouldn’t be there? Or were they just another mythological mix up?

He didn’t want to find out.

Before he could slice through them, two opened their mouths releasing a spray of fire in front of them.

“They breathe fire?” Alex exclaimed.

“Yeah,” Jason muttered. 

“Roman monsters suck,” she muttered. “How do we get rid of them?”

“We won't--Jack will.” Magnus released the grip on the glowing sword. It sliced through the basilisks in a few easy strokes. The snakes melted into a puddle of golden dust.

“Huh,” Jason blinked. “That’s an interesting weapon you have.”

“You’ll get used to him real fast.”

They started running again, avoiding the patches of grass still on fire. A few lone einherji came close, meeting an unfortunate end with Mallory’s knives or Halfborn’s axe. None of them seemed too annoyed. 

A boy tried to hit Jason with a baseball bat, only to be stabbed in the chest.

Gods, Coach Hedge would love this place.

The group emerged from the forest into the open space, making them more likely to be spotted. They passed another floor fighting a large wolf with glowing eyes.

“Keep going,” Magnus yelled.

“What are we trying to do here?” Jason asked.

“Stay alive as long as possible.”

“There’s no plan or strategy?”

“When you’ve got one, let me know.”

“ _ I  _ have a plan,” TJ piped up. “We should take that hill!” 

Mallory groaned. “Everyday it’s the same damn thing. Maybe we would stay alive longer if the hill didn’t put us into obvious view?” 

Jason squinted. “No . . . getting up higher is a good idea,” he muttered. “I think I have an idea.”

He planned to show these Norse guys exactly what they were dealing with.

Jason charged to the front of the group. He clambered to the top of the grassy hill, fending of warriors with his gladius.

He looked towards the sky. “I’m going to try something.”

This was a chance to test his limits like nothing before.

He raised his hands, and channeled the full force of his powers, all of his anger at this afterlife mistake towards the sky. He clenched his fist. Dark clouds materialised above, and thousands of enherji looked upward.

Jason didn’t notice. He twisted the winds above him until they turned volatile. Cyra’s iconic scarf fluttered, hitting him in the face. But he didn’t lose focus, weaving a storm above him.

It was incredible. It also caught everyone's attention, and before long he had a few dozen warriors charging towards him on the hill. 

His hall mates created a circle around him, fending off the approaching einherji. Cyra, small and agile, darted through the crowd, slashing with her dual knives and a grin. TJ stabbed and parried with his bayonet. Jack floated beside Magnus, and appeared to be singing. He couldn’t spot Alex, but a lion had joined the group instead. Was she a shapeshifter?

The thought made him think of Frank, and his attention slipped. The wind spiraled outward, pushing back a few of the warriors, but he couldn’t call it back under his control.

A sudden wave of strength rippled through him. The storm bubbled, almost overwhelming Jason, but he regained his grip. 

He glanced beside him. The son of Holler had slipped through the sight of his friends, or perhaps they ignored him. Either way, Stig stood there with befuddlement across his face. His presence seemed to amplify the storm, though it didn’t look like he was doing it on purpose. Jason had never seen a power like that.

Jason drew the fragment of the storm towards him. The power built up in his fists, making his hair stand on its end.

He released his hands.

A surge of lightning coursed through him, reaching out across the battlefield, electrifying a few of the einherji. A clump of trees caught on fire. 

The sky darkened further.

This new body had strengthened not only his physical self, but his abilities too. The force of the storm ran through his body, tethering between overwhelming and controlled.

Something soft and cold brushed his face. Was it snowing? Last time he checked, Jason couldn’t do that.

He turned; Aurelie, daughter of Skadi had joined him as well. Her presence was a far more welcome sight than certain other snow goddesses Jason knew. She smiled at him.

The trio of new einherji stood back to back, building their storm. They worked in unity, a silent agreement to show Valhalla what they were dealing with, to show their strength of one lifetime. The snow increased to a blizzard, the temperature turning bitter. The winds roared, stronger than anything Jason had managed before. The gust forced their opponents backwards, struggling to even reach the hill, only to be obscured by the thick cloud of snow ahead of him. 

He needed to get higher.

Jason pulled the winds under his control. His feet lifted off the ground, Aurelie shooting him a shocked face. But he didn’t stop, rising towards the ominous storm bubbling overhead. With each metre closer he could feel his power heighten, electricity in his reach.

Jason called upon the lighting. It coursed through him before shooting from his fingertips in jagged bursts. He could barely see his targets below, but his focus was on the raw power he clutched. He never had the opportunity to train like this. The sky crackled.

His muscles were growing weaker, but he had to persevere. Below him, Stig had fallen, so he lacked that extra strength. The snow had faltered too, Aurelie must have been injured.

His flight had caught the attention of more einherji, who shot at him with arrows and other long distance weapons. Jason channeled the lightning again. His vision vanished for a moment, his breathing became strained.

He was reaching his limits, limits that had been expanded like never before.

A sharp pain burst from his leg. Jason glanced down to see an arrow sticking out of his calf.

That’s not great, he thought.

He tumbled toward the ground.

Jason slept like he was dead. Which he was. A calm, dreamless sleep was something he hadn’t had in a long time, so he was disappointed when Cyra and Magnus disrupted it.

He awoke to the pair standing at the foot of his bed, looking mildly bitter.

Jason ran a hand through his hair.“Have you been standing there waiting for me?”

Cyra glanced at Magnus. “We’re both fast healers.”

“You, on the other hand, are not,” Magnus said.

“And the issue is?”

“You didn’t mention you could fly!” Cyra interrupted. “Children of Thor cannot fly.”

“I thought it would be a given. I thought  _ you  _ knew about me.”

“Just basic stuff,” Magnus stammered. “Not about flying.”

"How are we supposed to explain your parentage now?"

"Uhhh . . . maybe my mom's side."

Cyra folded her arms, looking more like an angry twelve year old than ever. “We told you to lie low. Summoning a storm and flying are not lying low.”

“Right.”

“Though . . . it did impress some people. Like,” she smiled, “the Thanes, other Valkyries . . . people who would matter when selecting a Valkyrie Captain.”

“But you still fucked up.

“Yes,” Cyra scowled. “And we’re mad at you.”

Magnus flopped onto Jason’s bed, all of his imposing look gone. “I think half of Valhalla wants to kill you and the other two new einherji. People do not like getting killed by beginners. All of you working together was an incredible sight."

‘“What was Stig’s role in it?”

“I don’t know. He was just kind of there.” The son of Holler’s presence seemed to boost the power of the storm. Being the god of destruction . . . could Stig’s powers be to simply create and build chaos? It was a terrifying thought.

“So . . . are we going to dinner?”

“You slept through dinner.”

“Oh.” Jason forgot how draining summoning a storm was. One of that magnitude should have killed him. “Now what?”

Magnus shrugged. “Go to bed. Tomorrow we do it all again.”

Around two in the morning, Jason woke up to the sound of something large hitting his floor. 

He sat upright, and reached for the coin on his bedside table. He squinted.

“Fuck!” The stranger yelled. They stumbled across the floor, before a thump that suggested they ran into the couch.

Jason froze. That voice, he could recognise it, even if he hadn’t heard it in awhile. 

Jason reached for his glasses, before remembering he didn’t need or have them anymore. His eyes adjusted to the darkness, the only light from the splash of stars above him. It didn’t help him see; the boy was made of shadow anyway.

“Nico?” He whispered. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whew! I usually suck at writing action, but I thoroughly enjoyed that. hope you did to. we're finally getting to some actual plot!
> 
> and as usual the son of hades shows up amidst the new pantheon


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry that this chapter is short and transitiony,,,

He flipped the light on, illuminating the surprise on the boy's face.

“I found you.” Nico’s eyes were wide. He broke into a genuine smile.

Jason tried to adjust to Nico’s presence. One fragment of his old life had returned to him. It made it chest ache, with joy and longing

Nico frowned. “But . . .you’re still dead.”

“Somewhat. Yeah.”

Nico’s face fell for a brief moment, as if he had been hoping for a different answer, but knew better.

He moved on, turning his attention to the rest of the room. “What is this place?”

Jason pursed his lips. “Have you heard of Valhalla?”

“Oh Gods.” Nico sat down on the couch. “That explains a lot.”

It didn’t surprise Jason that he knew about it. This was the kid who went back and forth between the two camps without telling anyone. It wasn’t unlikely for the Ambassador of Pluto was familiar with other afterlives.

“So . . . you ended up in the Norse afterlife. How did that happen?”

“I was chosen by a Valkyrie because of a brave act.” He sighed. “Now I’m an einherji.”

"Less literally. I meant, why are you here and not the Underworld."

"No idea."

“But you’re still dead?”

“Sort of. It’s a bit like a new form. From what I can understand, within the Hotel, I can die and be revived. But if I leave--”

“You can leave?”

“Yeah. But if I leave, and die, I’ll die permanently.” He sat down next to Nico.

“Wow.”

Now that he had come closer, he could see the concern on Nico’s face; dark circles hung under his eyes, mixed with the redness of dried tears. More than that, the way he seemed to hover between being solid and shadow, something he had seen only after Nico had overexerted himself travelling.

“Were you looking for me?”

Nico seemed to deflate. “I heard what happened. So I went to make sure,” he gulped, “make sure you arrived safely. But my father said you never made it.”

“You went to the underworld?”

“Just to check on you!” He stammered. “I wasn’t going to try to bring you back, not like . . .” He drifted off for a moment, before blinking and continuing. “But when I didn’t find you, I knew something was up.”

"Like being sent to the wrong underworld."

“I knew you were dead, but for a little while . . . it felt like you weren’t.”

“Like with Leo?”

“Sort of. Leo was well and truly gone, and then he was alive again. Two separate states. You were hovering in between, and still are. “ He fiddled with the ring on his finger. “For a little bit . . . I was hopeful.”

“That I was still alive?”

“Yeah. So I went searching. I ended up in Boston, a weird tree, among other places. Then here.” Nico stood up. He faded to a slightly transparent state before returning to normal. “But I’m glad to see you again.”

“How long have you been traveling?”

Nico grimaced. “A few days? It’s hard to focus on the time when you’re shadow traveling. I went to the underworld on Thursday . . . then there was the attack on Camp Jupiter . . .”

“The  _ what?” _

Nico clicked his tongue. “Of course. Commodus and Caligula attacked a few days ago. There was a lot of damage. The Caldecott tunnel was destroyed. On another note, our communication was solved, so I was able to hear about it fast. Too late to help, but--”

He staggered, losing his balance. Jason caught him.

“You should rest. I don’t want your boyfriend to kill me, again.”

He held up a hand. “No worries. I’m fine.” 

Nico promptly collapsed on the carpet.

Jason couldn’t be surprised. He hoisted Nico onto the couch. He often overexerted himself shadow travelling. It couldn’t have helped that he had tried to find Jason, which made him feel irrationally guilty.

What could he do now? If only Will was here. Despite being a praetor, healing wasn’t something he was familiar with.

Centurions should have a first aid course, at the very least. As organised as Camp Jupiter was, sometimes straying from the original ideals might help. 

Jason considered the predicament for a moment, before the solution struck him. He didn't need a Solace. He had something--he hoped--was just as good.

Magnus opened his door, his expression deadpan. “You better have a good fucking reason for waking me up at two am.”

Jason held up his hands “Yes. I promise.”

“Someone should be dead, dying or need a singing sword.”

“What?”

Magnus waved a hand. “Ignore that. What did you want?”

“You can heal people, right?”

He rolled his eyes, and sighed. “What did you do?”

“It’s not me! It’s a . . . friend of mine.”

Magnus raised an eyebrow. “Mortals aren’t really supposed to show up at Valhalla.”

Jason’s stomach twisted.

He yawned. “But I’ve already broken that rule multiple times.”

“So you’ll help me?”

Magnus stretched his arms, and yawned. “Give me five minutes. Or thirty. Get breakfast. Then we’ll see.”

He slammed the door.

It ended up being fifteen. Magnus entered wearing a rumpled hotel Valhalla t-shirt. For a son of Frey, he was not a morning person. Alex trailed behind him, her green hair sticking up at all sorts of angles.

“You brought Alex?”

“What?” she said, twisting a piece of golden wire in between his fingers. “I’m a part of this, including whatever trouble you have gotten into this time.”

“It wasn’t my fault,” he grumbled, though being a demigod, few things were. Bad things occurred regardless. 

“Both of you, be quiet. If you’re going to waste time, I’m going back to bed.”

She laid her head on his shoulder. “You’re no fun. Also, Jason, I’m a guy now. Until I tell you otherwise.”

"Did you get breakfast?"

Jason held out the muffins he stole from the lounge.

Magnus grabbed one, and took a bite. He scowled. "Blueberry? Never mind." He shook his head . “What’s the issue here? Let’s make it quick.”

Jason gestured to the couch. “I got a visit from one of my friends.”

“And you killed him,” Alex said.

“No!”

He frowned. “He looks dead.”

“I’m pretty sure he’s not. Magnus, can you heal him?”

“I think I’m with Alex on this one. But I can try.”

He placed his hands on Nico’s arm, and closed his eyes. Magnus began to radiate a soft golden glow.

He staggered backward, shaking out his hands. “Whoa. That’s unusual--”

Before he could explain, Nico awoke, staring at the green haired Alex Fierro. “Who the hell are you?”

Alex only stared, tapping his chin. “Are you sure he isn’t dead?” He squinted. “He looks dead.”

“You don’t look dead, and yet, you are,” Nico snapped. He stared at Magnus and Alex. “Why are all of you dead?”

“These are also einherjar. They live next door,” Jason explained. “And this is Nico, the Ambassador to Pluto.”

“Hades. Also, that title isn’t really necessary anymore.”

Alex shrugged. “What’s the difference?”

Jason sighed. “That’s a  _ long  _ story I don’t want to go into.”

“But who is this, and why do I feel like I know them?”

“I’m Magnus. Annabeth’s cousin.”

“That’s it. You look like a softer, male Annabeth.”

“Great,” Magnus said, ignoring the comment. “If we’re all done with introductions, I’m going to head back to bed--”

“No.” Nico spoke with such authority it scared Jason for a moment. Sometimes he forgot how powerful this kid was. A part of him wondered if his control over the dead extended to einherjar. “If you two are familiar with our world--the Greek and Roman world, then maybe you can help us come up with a plan of what to do next--how to reintroduce Jason, and with him, the Norse gods.”

“I hate planning,” Magnus muttered.

“Actually, I think I have an idea of what I should do." The sudden eyes on him was not Jason had gotten used to, even with all of his years as a preator. He tried to regain his thoughts. "At least, a first step. Do you have a dena--a drachma? Is that what they are called?”

Nico frowned. “I see where this is going. But are you sure you're ready to talk to someone else? Everyone thinks you're dead.”

“Just one person. Someone I can trust.”  _ The one person who might have experience with this.  _

“If you say so.”

“Do you have a hose, or a fountain? We need to create a spray of mist, don’t we?”

Alex shook his head. “Your plans are so weird. But anything we need should conveniently appear in one of the cupboards.”

Magnus sighed. “My room has grass. We don’t want to ruin the carpets. The cleaners already don’t like it when Alex smashes his pottery everywhere.”

Jason frowned. “Isn’t the idea for you to make the pottery?”

He scowled. “Things don't always turn out nice.”

“It’s really annoying though?” Cyra interrupted. 

Jason jumped, and turned to see Cyra standing in the doorway, in silver pajamas and her pair of knives.

She pushed her glasses up.“Did you really think you could get away with sneaking someone into Valhalla without me noticing?”

“Nico got in all by himself,” Magnus said.

She rolled her eyes. “A likely story. Either way, you’re not going to get away with whatever scheme you’re in the middle of.”

"There's no scheme here," Alex said.

Magnus raised an eyebrow. “Unless?”

She folded her arms. “Unless you let me join in.”

Alex grinned. “Sure!”

Magnus sighed. “I can’t get out of this, can I?”

“Nope!”

The group headed to Magnus’s room, Cyra leading the way. As he said, they found the hose with ease. Jason attached it to the tap, and twisted it on. The crack of water woke him up, reminding him what he was about to do. It made it feel certain. He was going to be able to see his friends again.

One friend. 

The thought made his stomach twist.

“Alex can hold the hose,” Jason said, passing it to him.

Immediately, Alex flipped the hose around, spraying Jason Grace’s face with a jet of water.

He laughed. “What were you expecting?”

Jason frowned. “Can I trust you?”

“No,” Alex muttered, before moving to his position.

“Cyra,” Magnus said, “do the thing.”

She smiled, and clapped her hands. Her palms illuminated with golden light. The wash of light blended with the water, creating the rainbow they needed.

“Are you ready?” Nico whispered. He pressed a single golden drachma into Jason’s palm.

Jason nodded, and took a deep breath. He was far from ready, but he wanted to see her more than he was afraid. “Oh Iris, Goddess of the Rainbow,” he flipped the coin into the air as he had done so many times. “Show me Reyna  Ramírez-Arellano.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whew! another cliffhanger! The Mark of Athena should have prepared you for this.
> 
> Cyra's parentage will be revealed in two chapters. Any more guesses?
> 
> hope you enjoyed!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter took a lot longer than I expected, but I'm so happy with how it turned out. It's pretty dialogue heavy, but I think it's my favourite so far.
> 
> hope you enjoy!

Jason’s heart pounded in his skull. “Maybe you should talk to her.” He shoved Nico into full view of the incoming message.

“This was your idea.” Nico stepped backwards, careening into Magnus. Magnus stumbled towards the shroud of mist, when Reyna materialised into view. 

She was dressed in silver, the only colour was the purple cloak draped over her shoulders. She clenched an imperial gold sword. Her two metal greyhounds sat beside her.

She frowned at Magnus. “Do I know you?”

Magnus squinted at Reyna’s hazy shape in the water. “What _is_ this? How does it work?”

Reyna frowned. “If this is another prank from the Hermes cabin, I will bring the entirety of the hunters to Camp--”

“Hunters?” Jason interrupted.

Reyna froze. Her hand tightened on the spear. One of the dogs growled. “I said, if this is a prank--

“Hunters?” Nico said, sounding just as bewildered as Jason.

Both of them stepped into view.

Reyna’s face softened as she took in the sight of the two of them. 

“Um . . .” What could Jason say now? The words were stuck in his throat. “I can explain the situation, sort of . . .” he sighed. “Look, um--”

“Hunters?” Nico repeated, his voice quavering. “You joined the hunters of Artemis?”

Reyna didn’t respond, fiddling with the ring on her finger.

“You told me about the attack on Camp, about freeing Harpocrates, and didn’t mention the hunters?” His voice grew in intensity with each word. The lights flickered.

“Nico--” she whispered.

“I’ll leave you to catch up with Jason,” he said, his voice as sharp as the stygian iron sword hanging at his side. “And I will see you later.”

He stepped back and melted into the shadows.

Magnus shot Jason a look, like _What was that about?_

Jason didn’t quite know himself. Most of Nico’s past was unknown. He knew snippets, but nothing that would point to disliking the hunters.

He had something much more important to focus on. He turned back to Reyna.

“Uh, hi.”

“Jason.”

“That’s me.” Stupid. He shouldn’t be so casual--he could see the sadness on her face. But what else was he supposed to say? 

“Did . . . did Nico summon you?”

“No . . . um he found me, though and . . .” Jason couldn’t get his brain to work. Just the sight of his closest friend melted him. How was he supposed to do this with everyone else? 

He should start at the beginning. “He went to look for me in the underworld--not to bring me back,” he added, noticing Reyna’s expression. Jason wasn’t sure if Nico had told the truth about that either. “He wanted to see that I arrived ok. But I didn’t end up there.”

Reyna didn’t respond, watching him with the steely glare usually reserved for new campers.

Jason took a deep breath. “For some reason, I was chosen to end up in the Norse afterlife--Valhalla.”

Reyna’s face molded into confusion. “Norse?”

“The Norse gods--like Loki, Thor, and uh, Frey.” He hoped he got those names right, or at least one of the people in this room would kill him. Just because they could. “They exist today, the same way as Greek and Roman.”

Reyna closed her eyes, and sighed. “Of course they do.”

“So now I’m still sort of alive. As an eiherhji, while I’m here, I can’t die. But apparently I can leave, as long as I don’t die. Then I would most likely end up in the underworld.”

“Most likely.”

“We’re in unknown territory here.” More than usual. “Which is why I wanted your advice.”

“What can I do?”

“There’s more than me just returning. With my return, I bring news of a new pantheon, and I don’t know how to prepare people.”

She raised an eyebrow. “And . . .”

“You’re the only person who has any experience with anything like that.”

“Um, we almost started a civil war because Octavian got in the way. I am not the person you want to look at for this. It was you and the seven who brought us together. I was only the representative of the legion.”

“But it’s more than that. We . . . were partners. We worked together, helped each other.” _And I regret not continuing that._

“Jason, neither of us are Praetors anymore. I’m done with that.”

Jason focused again on the tent background, Reyna's silver attire contrasting with her spear. “So . . . you really joined the hunters?”

He suddenly had a terrible feeling that his death might have had something to do with her decision.

“Yeah. I felt like . . . like it was time to move on from praetor.”

“I understand what you mean. That’s sort of why I became Pontifex Maximus." He ran his fingers through his hair, hair that was longer than it was while at Camp Jupiter. "Praetor didn’t feel like my purpose anymore. But . . . you could have retired to New Rome.” 

“In New Rome it would be no different. If I stay anywhere around Camp, I will always be Praetor. I wanted a fresh start.”

“But--”

“Surely that’s a factor of why you didn’t come back," she snapped. "Why you went to your boarding school, still helping the legion without being there? You will always be Jason the praetor, and you were trying to change that.”

Was she angry at him? Years of being the legions figurehead had made her unreadable, even to him. But there was some kind of bitterness, wrapped up in longing that made him feel so, so guilty.

“After being in my sister's shadow, I thought praetor was a step towards being in control of my own life. But now I'm tired of being a leader. Tired of having all the expectations upon you, bearing the blame for the failures. It doesn’t feel like my place anymore.”

“But why the hunters? That doesn’t seem like you.” 

“How much do you know about me, Jason?” she yelled in a sudden outburst. Her shoulders drooped. “I had a life before Camp, before you, that not many know the details of. I have only started to figure myself out. It’s hard for even me to know what ‘seems like me.’”

“I just want you to consider if it's the right decision.”

“Maybe I’m not supposed to be a hunter. Maybe I am. But for the time being, I enjoy it. And for now, I think that is enough.” She tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. It was one of the first times Jason had seen her hair out for a while, he noted. “I like spending time with others, travelling and hunting. I feel like I can enjoy myself, being part of a group and not at the front of it. With praetorship, there was never time for many friendships.” She smiled at him.

“I want to fix that,” he blurted. “With discovering the other camp, we drifted apart and I never tried to change it.” They were no longer the kids laughing and training at camp, and they were no longer the stern praetors either. They both needed a new start, but a new start together. 

Her anger washed away. “I want to as well."

"I'm sorry for the way things ended up."

She smiled. "Well, I can't blame you for that. But I’m glad you called me. And I’m glad to see you again.”

“You too.”

“As for the Norse issue . . . I would talk to Chiron and the rest of the seven. Let them know you’re somewhat alive. They did this once before. Then, you’ll have to tell the whole camp eventually.” 

“Thank you.”

“Honestly, a lot of it is just having presence, acting like you know what you were doing.” She shook her head. “Who’s idea was it to put a pair of sixteen year olds to lead a legion?”

Jason laughed. “I’ll visit you guys soon. Apparently, I’m near Boston.”

“The Norse gods chose to live in _Boston_? Of all places?” Her surprised expression was a welcome sight, something that wasn't practiced, but genuine and familiar.

He shrugged. “San Francisco was taken.”

“Well, maybe I’ll visit you. The Hunters move around a lot.”

“Sure.” The mention of the hunters reminded him. “Before . . . what was up with Nico?”

The atmosphere shifted again. Reyna shook her head. “I should have told him earlier. I’m just . . . not ready. For _that_ reaction. But . . you should ask him yourself.”

“Ok. Also, if you’re with the Hunters . . . does that mean--?”

“Yeah.” Reyna stood up. “I can go and get her. She’ll be happy to see you. Until we meet again, Jason Grace.”

“See you later, Praetor.”

She paused on her way out, trying to suppress a smile. “You can’t say that to me anymore. Save it for Hazel.”

“Hazel is a praetor?”

Reyna left the tent.

“Reyna! Is Hazel a praetor?”

No response.

Hazel and Frank . . . praetors. Who was the centurion on the fifth, then? So much had changed since he left. He was more anxious to return now.

A few moments later, someone different entered the tent; a girl with short black hair, adorned with a silver circlet, and startling blue eyes.

“Jason,” she said. “You’re alive.”

And suddenly he was back to the quest a year ago, seeing her for the first time in years. The warmth of being brought back

“Not quite,” he said, and he explained himself again, even though he was sick of explaining the situation, but it wasn’t the first time and it wouldn’t be the last. 

“Why are you always the one who gets involved with other gods?”

“Bad luck?”

Thalia narrowed her eyes. “I _bet_ Hera has something to do with this. Or the Norse Queen of the gods. Would she do that?”

“Frigg?” Magnus piped up. Jason had almost forgotten he was there. “Don’t know. You would have to ask Mallory.”

“Mallory would say _yes,_ ” Alex replied. “It’s Mallory.”

Thalia frowned. “Who else is there?”

“Uh . . . Annabeth’s cousin, his boyfriend, and my Valkyrie. Also Nico, but he left when he saw Reyna had joined the hunters.”

She grimaced. “That makes sense.”

So Nico had a past with the hunters--something Thalia knew about. 

But she changed the subject. “Annabeth has a cousin?"

"Yep, a son of Frey."

"Don't know who that is."

Magnus rolled his eyes.

Thalia drummed her fingers on her thigh. "So what’s next?”

“Well . . . I need to talk to the others. Plus, I received a prophecy.”

She chuckled. “It just doesn’t end, does it?”

“Nope. Do the hunters get prophecies, or is it a free pass from quests?”

“Oh, you can’t escape the will of the gods. But the life is freer, and Artemis is one of more relaxed goddesses. We get called on for duties, but the constant travel makes us hard to find.”

They sat opposite each other for a few moments in silence. Being reunited with his sister had given Jason a sense of fulfillment he hadn’t expected. He wanted to just enjoy it, not think about the prophecy, and him dying, but sit and have a glimpse of what their life could have been.

“Sometimes I regret it,” Thalia blurted.

“What?”

“Joining the hunters.” She stared at the floor. “The memories I have, the friendships--I would not trade them for anything. But I wonder what it would be like if I hadn’t made that choice.”

“Then why did you do it?” People had occasionally left Camp Jupiter to join the hunters of Diana. A life of constant movement and false immortality had never appealed to Jason, not that he could claim it. Now, he received it without choice.

“It was a last minute decision. I was approaching sixteen and would have brought the Great Prophecy upon the world. I didn’t want that responsibility.” She brought her legs to her chest.

Thalia hadn’t told Jason any of this before. Being separated for twelve years lead to them knowing very little about their separate lives. Jason always assumed her story was the same as his--ending up at Camp, training for years, before joining the hunters.

“I mean, I had just gotten out of the tree, adjusting to being physical again . . .and then I had this fate I had to accept.” She fiddled with a bracelet on her wrist. “I wasn’t ready to do that.”

Jason squinted. “Sorry--you were stuck in a tree?”

Thalia looked up, her expression deadly serious. “Did I not tell you I was a pine tree for half a decade?”

“No?”

“Oh.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “When me, Annabeth, Grover and . . ” she gulped, “Luke arrived at Camp, we were attacked. I tried to ensure they made it. I would have died, if Zeus hadn’t turned me into a pine tree.”

Normal sibling discussions, Jason thought. He was still getting used to it.

“I wondered what it would be like if I had a normal life. At least, a normal demigod life.”

“And what would you do?”

“I guess I would quit the hunters. I don’t know if I would go to camp or just . . . be an adult. Get a job and that.” She laughed. “That doesn’t happen for people like us.”

“You could go to New Rome. Demigods can have lives there.” 

“When I saw you two winters ago . . . I thought about it.”

“Thought about what?”

“Quitting. Not for New Rome, I didn’t know about it then. But when there was the possibility of having a life together . . . I thought we could make up for the years we’d missed. The life we had if gods hadn’t meddled.” 

Jason shook his head. “Those damn gods.”

Thalia giggled. Tears glistened her cheeks. “Those dam gods.”

“At least we have a while now. Until Ragnarok.”

“What’s Ragnarok?”

Jason sighed. “You don’t want to know.”

She smiled. “Also . . . what happened to your face?”

Jason frowned. "What?"

"The scar on your lip. It's gone."

"Oh." He ran his fingers over where it should have been. "All my scars were erased after I died."

Thalia tilted her head, as if she was getting used to the lacking on his face. Like he had lost part of what made him Jason. "Huh."

The smooth skin caused thoughts he had tried to push back to bubble up again. The question stuck in his throat. He couldn’t bring it into reality by speaking it, only letting it echo around his mind. 

_What if I break the promise I made with Apollo?_

_What if_ I _don’t remember?_

Thalia pulled him out of his mind. “I should go, Jason. But please keep contacting me. We’re going to stick together.”

He nodded. He couldn’t get anymore words out. His hands trembled.

The image of Thalia vanished. But those thoughts stayed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so that was a lot!
> 
> there was so much I wanted to explore in this chapter. Reyna's decision to join the hunters was controversial, a lot of people calling it out of character. I'm not sure I agree with it, but I enjoyed writing her explanation. then of course there was nico finding out, which still has to conclude.  
> also jason and reyna's friendship being strained . . . lots of emotions. and i almost cried writing thalia's part
> 
> anyway 'see you later praetor' is the best written phrase I have ever created. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it!


	9. We play hide and seek (and lose)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cyra talks about her godly parent. The group looks for Nico. Alex has questions
> 
> And how much exactly do the Pantheons overlap?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi I'm sorry if this is bad I've had writers block all week I've just had enough with this chapter. the next few should be more interesting as we start the quest.

“ _ Whoa. _ ” The light from Cyra’s hands died out. She stumbled, before regaining her balance. “I don’t know if I’ve ever summoned light for that long.” She stretched out her fingers. “That was tiring.”

Jason stood up, still in a daze. 

“Anywayyy . . . was someone going to tell me that there was a band of immortal huntresses that follow the Roman moon goddess, or was I supposed to find out from Jason’s sister?”

“Aren’t you the daughter of a moon goddess?” Jason asked. “Surely there’s something similar.”

Cyra chuckled. “Um, no. I’m the daughter of the sun goddess.”

“I thought Frey was the sun god.” He glanced between the two of them. “Are you two . . . siblings?” That  _ would  _ explain their somewhat tense, somewhat joking relationship.

Cyra paused, before laughing again. “Gods no! I’m the daughter of Sol, the goddess of the sun. Frey is the god of summer, amongst other things.” She shook her head. “No  _ way _ .”

“Then why do you dress like that?” Cyra looked like a hunter when Jason had first seen her, dressed in grey with her champagne coloured hair.

She shrugged. “I look good in grey. I thought the scarf made it a little more obvious. No?”

Jason shook his head. “Sol was also a Roman sun god, before the current one. His Greek name is Helios.”

“What happened to him?”

Jason thought back over the last week. “Uh, that’s a long story.”

She sighed. “Anyway, our moon god is a guy. Mani. Drives across the sky in a big moon chariot.”

“Sounds like Artemis.”

“What’s your sun god like?”

“It’s funny you ask. He’s um, not really a god anymore.”

“How did  _ that _ happen?"

Jason sighed. “That’s a long story. But uh, I think we need to find Nico first.”

“Yeah, that’s a good idea” Magnus grimaced. “Mortals really aren’t supposed to be in Valhalla. We don’t want anyone to spot him.”

“He looks dead enough,” Alex said. “He’ll go under the radar long enough for us to find him.”

“How big is this place, anyway?” So far, the size of every room had surprised him.

“Five hundred and forty floors.”

“Yeah, that’s going to be tough. There’s also a chance he’s left Valhalla.”

Magnus groaned. “Excellent.”

“We should split up,” Cyra suggested. “We’ll cover more ground.”

“Lovely. I’ll stick with Grace,” Alex said.

“You’re going to leave me with Cyra?”

He shrugged. “I want to hear about more Greek stuff.”

Cyra rolled her eyes. “I’ll make sure we don’t get lost.” She sauntered out of the room.

Alex grinned. “See you later babe!”

Magnus scowled as he left.

“So . . . how are we going to find him in this big hotel?”

“Nico was already tired. He couldn’t have travelled much further. Plus, he just wanted to leave, not go anywhere specific.”

“Hopefully. We’ll work our way upwards through the floors.”

They headed to the hallway.

“Try not to be too loud,” Alex said. “Past 12am is a no killing zone, so people will get suspicious when you’re out of your room.”

The hallway was dark, lit only by torches hanging by the sides casting long shadows.

“Check the lounge,” Alex suggested. 

Jason scanned the alcove. Nico was not waiting at the table, resting on the sofas. He wasn’t in any of the corners, or amongst the curtains.

This was going to get boring, very quickly.

“Could he be in one of the other rooms?”

Alex glanced at the doors. “Then it can wait until the morning. Next floor.”

He pushed the button for the lift. The sudden chime echoed in the quiet night. The doors slid open, revealing Aurelie, looking angry beside the son of Hades.

Alex yelped and vanished.

“Looking for something, Jason Grace?” She asked. “This friend of yours broke into the games room, made a mess, and then demanded to see Jason Grace.”

“And then you threatened me with your bow,” Nico said. He leaned against the wall of the lift, looking drained.

“How did you find him?”

She shrugged. “My mom is a hunting goddess. I’m good at finding things. You should try not losing them.”

“Thank you.” Jason pulled Nico from the elevator.

“Who’s your mom?” Nico asked. 

“Skadi. Goddess of archery, hunting, winter, and snowshoes.”  Aurelie pressed one of the buttons. “Also,” she smiled. “Nice job on the storm yesterday.”

Jason waved. “Couldn’t have done it without you.”

He put one of Nico’s arms around his shoulders for support. Nico still looked like he was going to pass out at any moment, not to mention a little dazed 

The elevator doors slid shut. Alex reappeared.

“Phew.” Alex fixed his bright green hair. “That was close. Lucky she found us--probably doesn’t know all the rules yet.”

Nico frowned. “You’re a shapeshifter.”

“Yeah. Most children of Loki can. Transforming into a fly is a great way to go unnoticed. My sister can tell you a funny story about that--”

“One of our friends can shapeshift.” The last thing Jason wanted to do was think about more of his friends, especially after the mixed emotions of the last conversation. 

“See,  _ this  _ is why I wanted to stick with you. Tell me more about the shapeshifter.”

“Frank? He almost died.”

“What?” Jason almost dropped Nico.

“Almost." Nco regained his balance. "Blew up the Caldecott tunnel, and killed Caligula in the Camp Jupiter attack.” 

Jason froze.  “He’s dead. Caligula’s dead?”

The thought made him feel something he couldn’t describe. Some weird satisfaction that a conclusion had been reached. The man who hurt his friends, the man who  _ killed him _ was dead. 

“And Apollo killed Commodus.”

Jason blinked. That overwhelmed feeling was starting to creep back, along with relief that things were starting to change. So much had happened in the last week. He was used to being at the centre of demigod affairs, missing out made him feel detached, but weirdly content. This was why he left, he chided himself.

“So they aren’t immortal?”

Nico nodded.

“Hold on--this is about your Roman Emperors, isn’t it? Why would they be immortal?”

“They avoided death by living on through memory--the same way Gods do. So like the Gods, we thought they were immortal.”

Alex frowned. “The gods aren’t immortal though.”

“What do you mean?”

“Norse gods can be killed.” Alex tapped his hand against his thigh, no longer bothering to be quiet. “They are stronger than mortals, and there are specific ways for it to happen, based on the prophecies of Ragnarok. And they’re only somewhat immortal ‘cause of the golden apples kept by Idun. They can make you stop aging, heal you--anything except escaping destiny.”

“Well, either way, they’re dead.”

“Which leaves Nero,” Jason concluded.

“Last I heard, Apollo and Meg are heading to New York to confront him there.”

Jason silently tried not to lose his mind. How long had he been dead? He was pretty sure it was only a week. More than everything he had been presented with so far, the idea that the world simply continued without him scared Jason the most. 

Alex pulled open the door. Cyra and Magnus were already waiting, and bickering about who knew what. 

“Why did you two come back so early?” Alex interrupted.

Magnus looked surprised to see us, before he sighed. “We encountered some security wolves, and had to come back.”

“Security wolves?” Jason asked.

“They patrol the hallways to make sure people aren’t wandering around.” Alex patted his shoulder. “It’s lucky we didn’t meet any.”

Cyra leaped onto Jason’s bed. “And they are terrifying.”

Magnus nodded in agreement.

Jason sat down. "Well, now that we've found Nico, we can talk about this prophecy."

“You got a prophecy?”

“Yeah.” Jason scratched his neck. “And after what you told me, I’m concerned it lines up with Apollo’s mission.”

“What is it?”

Jason closed his eyes, trying to bring the words into the front of his mind, before reciting.

  
  


_ Child of thunder, journey south _

_ Golden guide to serpents mouth  _

_ Three sides join, enemies connect _

_ Rise with the tower, see the sun set _

Nico sat neutral faced, so Jason continued. “I mean, the  _ sun set _ ? That has to refer to Apollo.”

“But to see the sun  _ set _ , as a verb, as in . . . the end of Apollo? That isn’t something we want to happen.”

“Prophecies aren’t always direct. It could refer to the end of his trials--the end of his days as a mortal.”

“We don’t want to kill Apollo.” 

“Cyra can just take him to Valhalla.”

She snorted. “Yeah, an ex god from the wrong pantheon will do great here.”

“The tower . . . that is probably the Triumvirate headquarters in New York.”

"So I need to go up the tower . . . New York is south of Boston, south enough to fit with the prophecy."

"Why Boston?"

"Main mortal enterance to Valhalla," Magnus said.

Nico shook his head. " _Boston?_ " he whispered.

Nico's geographical crisis could wait. Jason considered the next lines.

“Three sides join.” He traced a triangle on the table. “what if that’s . . .” He glanced at Magnus and Nico.“What if that’s us--Greek, Roman and Norse coming together to fight?” 

Nico rolled his eyes. “So it's a repeat of the second giant war. Can the Fates get any new ideas?”

“Hopefully it won't be that big.” Jason contemplated another months long expedition all over the world, or multiple of them. That horrified him.

“Mythology tends to repeat itself,” Cyra said.

Jason considered the rest of the lines. “Could that go two ways-- _ enemies connect? _ Could there be Norse enemies siding with the Triumvirate?”

“It’s really just Nero. But what kind of enemies are there in the Norse world?”

“Well, the big number one is usually Loki, our favourite.” Alex grinned. “But I think he’ll be laying low for a while preparing for his next scheme. Surt is a possibility, still wants revenge from me stealing his nose, not to mention the numerous Jotun who generally don’t like us. There’s lots of possibilities.”

“Great,” Nico said.

“Well,” Jason grimaced. “I did have this dream . . .”

A great intro. Dreams were never good in the demigod world, and judging by Magnus’ expression, the same could be said of the Norse world. All the faces in the room turned to him.

“I intruded on a conversation between two people. An old man in purple--”

“Sounds like Nero,” Nico murmured.

“And another man, tall with reddish brown hair.”

Jason paused, waiting for some kind of recognition, but the others stayed silent.

He laced his finger together, and leaned forward. “They mentioned me--as a guest.”

Magnus’ eyes widened. “So they know you’re here.”

“And Nero knows you’re alive.”

A heavy silence settled upon the group, a unanimous decision that this was bad.

“Anyone who knows about Valhalla would have a connection to the Norse gods." Alex said. "He’s probably a Jotun of some kind.”

Nico frowned. “Nero would want someone with power--he wouldn’t ally with someone who couldn’t give him something.”

“Then we need to warn Apollo.” Jason stood up. “Head south to New York, and tell him about the new problems.”

“What’s this Apollo guy up to?” Cyra asked. 

“He needs to kill python.”

“Who’s python?”

“Python is a big old snake that lives in the centre of the world, though he currently has taken over the oracle of Delphi.” Jason was tired of explaining. Understanding part of the prophecy filled him with a burst of energy. He was ready to go.

“Sounds like Nidhogg.” Alex’s face morphed into genuine concern. “Is Apollo trying to kill Nidhogg?”

“Who’s Nidhogg?” Too many questions, too many questions.

“Nidhogg is a giant serpent who lives in the centre of the earth. He gnaws on the roots of Yggdrasil trying to destroy it.”

“That sounds bad.” Also, similar to python. Perhaps the world was big enough for two large snakes.

“But you can’t kill Nidhogg. Everything in the Norse world hangs in precarious balance." Alex procured his gold wire, and started to twist it. "As long as eggs don’t hatch, my brother stays bound, Cyra’s mom doesn’t get eaten by wolves and the world tree doesn’t get destroyed." He tightened the wire. "Ragnarok won’t begin. Without Niddhog, that balance is thrown off. The eagle won’t have anyone to argue with. They’ll destroy the tree, and won’t have anyone to fight later. It’s messing with destiny.”

“You sound like Blitzen,” Magnus muttered.

“So we can’t kill Python.”

“No! If python is Nidhogg, Apollo will incite Ragnarok. And there is no going back from that.”

"Surely there's a few giant mythological serpents hanging around," Cyra piped up.

"We can't risk that. We need to talk to this Apollo guy."

Jason raised an eyebrow. “So . . . we have to stop Apollo from doing the task he has had to prepare for the months since he became human.”

“Sounds like it.”

He sighed. It seemed that Jason could not get a break from the gods, even after dying.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so! Cyra is a daughter of Sol. I pulled an iceland/greenland you you :)  
> I was going to have her as a daughter of Mani, hence her design, but I though her dynamic with Apollo will be better plus I found some interesting mythology about Sol . . .


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jason's overthinking (again). Cyra's got secrets. Blitz and Hearth are tagging along. And Stig is definitely up to something.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi all, sorry for the wait on this chapter. As I'm sure a lot of you are, I've been feeling very unmotivated lately. I'm not giving up this story (I am enjoying it!) but I don't know how often I'll upload.
> 
> I hope you're all staying safe and healthy. enjoy the chapter!

“Before we do any of that.” Magnus stretched his arms. “I’m going back to bed.”

“Shouldn’t we head off as soon as possible?” Jason asked. He tapped his fingers on his thigh.

“Then you shouldn’t have woken me up.” Magnus replied. “Plus, we have to visit some friends of mine before New York.”

With that note, he left the room, followed by Alex and Cyra.

Nico had dozed off on the sofa, but Jason was far from able to sleep. He didn’t want to risk more dreams. Somehow, he both dreaded and loved the idea of going on another quest. Maybe he just needed to see his friends again.

Either way, he was too riled up to sleep now. He found a backpack in the cupboard. He filled it with a few items of clothing, a metal water bottle, and some mortal first aid supplies he found in the bathroom. He wished he had something stronger, like nectar or ambrosia, but hopefully Magnus would be enough.

He wanted to prep more, but there wasn’t much else to do. There was always something to do during sleepless nights at Camp Jupiter. The organised structure couldn’t maintain itself, and you could pass off insomnia as centurion duties.

The menial tasks got him through to about 6 am. Jason had no choice but to wait and wallow in his own thoughts. Which was a bad idea.

He lay on his bed and stared at the open ceiling. He never got to see this many stars growing up outside of San Francisco with all the light pollution. It relaxed him.

He looked forward to seeing Apollo again. They hadn’t exactly ended on the best of terms, or any really, that was the issue. Jason wanted to, he didn’t know, apologise? That wasn’t quite what it was. Just sort things out.

More than that, he needed to ask what it was like to be immortal. The freeze as the world changes, to have your friends slip out of reach, and have the passing of time be less of a worry.

They had switched places. It was almost enough to make Jason laugh. 

But he didn’t want to be like the gods, lose compassion and a sense of time. Or, on the other hand, become a mindless hotel resident who’s only joy was killing each day. Was it better than being a demigod and constantly facing a risk of death? Well, that had ended nicely.

Nor had it ended. The Norse gods saw mortals the same way as the Roman ones. He was another expendable. He sighed.

Jason had to admit, as Pontifex Maximus, an introduction to a whole new pantheon interested him, just a little. Maybe he’d meet one of these Norse gods. There was probably many minor ones, like Alex had mentioned. Maybe he could build some kind of monument to them.

This wouldn’t be all bad.

Before long, the sun had risen, and they could finally go. Breakfast had been around eight, and they should probably leave before then if they wanted to go unnoticed.

Jason washed his face, trying to refresh himself as much as possible without proper sleep. He woke up Nico and headed to the hallway.

Cyra already waited for him, sipping from a travel mug. Dressed with her trademark scarf, she carried a backpack and a pair of knives on her belt.

“You’re up early.”

“I always am,” she said. “You, on the other hand look like you haven’t slept at all.”

“Yeah,” was all that felt like an appropriate response.

“You’ll get used to it, I promise. You’ll make new friends, and have a new life.” That sounded fine, but Jason wasn’t ready to let go of his old one. “I was a bit luckier, since my sister died at the same time as me, and we both came here.”

“What happened to her?”

“You have your stories, I have mine.” She sighed. “She struggled here, since I was the only one who actually had a connection to the Norse world.” She had another mouthful of her drink. “Now, where is Chase?”

Jason wondered what Cyra had meant by that. Was her sister not a demigod, only her? And where had she gone?

Nico emerged from the room, looking not much better than Jason. Finally, Alex and Jason arrived. 

“Now, how do we get out of this place?”

“Recycling,” Magnus said, deadpanned. 

“What?”

Magnus picked up his pace through the winding corridor. “We need to head out before anyone sees our plan. Since we aren't supposed to leave” 

Jason kept running beside him

“The quickest way out of here is through the recycling chute.”

Magnus skidded to a stop in front of a metal door on the wall. It looked like it could fit a large bag of rubbish, or a person--barely.

Magnus pulled open the door and slid inside. Alex and Cyra did the same. 

Nico shook his head. “What have you gotten us into?”

He jumped into the chute.

Jason pulled open the door.

“Jason, wait!”

He paused in his movement, and looked up to see the son of Holler running towards him. 

He had a look of confusion. “Are you leaving Valhalla?”

“Stig--”

“Let me come with you,” he panted. “I can help you guys.”

Jason wasn’t sure what to say. The group was already big enough. They would be a magnet to monsters. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Stig, the way he had popped up suspiciously to talk to Jason all the time.

“Please. We can work together, like we did in the battle yesterday!”

He was right. Stig was powerful, and could be an ally, if he could learn to understand his powers. Alex told them to give him a chance, but was this the right way to do things?

“Jason?” Someone called from below. “Are you coming?”

“I’m sorry, Stig. But I don’t want you to get involved in this.”

Jason leaped down the chute, Stig’s forlorn face still imprinted into his mind.

There was something about his face, the angular shape and reddish brown hair that nagged at Jason’s brain. He couldn’t put the pieces together, but there was some kind of connection--

His thoughts were interrupted by his feet thundering against the ground. 

Jason looked up to see an old sandstone coloured building. It had a row of black arched windows layered across the from.

“Look at that,” Magnus said. “The Boston Public library.”

Jason frowned. “Why are we here?”

“Oh, Valhalla doors are very rarely consistent, or accurate. Last time we almost ended up in the Charles River,  _ again,  _ and the time before that--”

“We should keep going,” Cyra said.

“Right.” Magnus started leading them through the walkways.

Jason had never visited Boston before. Well, Roman demigods were told to avoid the East Coast as much as possible, but now he knew the true reason for that. There had been a few inevitable quests in the area, but never this more relaxed, almost sightseeing. At least, until they arrived at wherever Magnus was taking them. 

“Where are we going?” he asked. He wanted to have some idea, if he wasn't going to lead the way

“I told you, Grace, we’re visiting a few friends of mine.”

So, he wasn’t going to get any more details.

He hung back to walk beside Nico. 

“Have you been in contact with Apollo?”

“Not since he left Camp. Piper called us after . . . and then Reyna told us he was coming back to New York.”

Nico frowned. Jason wanted to ask him what his deal with the hunters was, but he didn’t think now was the right time. Plus he didn’t know if Nico’s grudge extended to Thalia, and he wasn’t eager to find out. 

“Our best bet is to find him in New York.”

Jason’s mouth went dry. New York had what, eight million people? And it was enemy territory. “How are we supposed to find him there?”

Nico shrugged. “You’re the golden guide, aren’t you?”

Right. Jason was supposed to lead this quest, lead an ex god to his fate or to incite the end of the world. 

“It might help to go back to camp,” Nico suggested

“I don’t think I’m ready for that.” As much as he wanted to see his friends, the thought of it made it made him ache. From nostalgia, maybe something else.

And of course, the quest came first. He needed to stop thinking about the past.

“Here we are,” Magnus exclaimed, snapping Jason out of his thoughts.

Jason stood outside what looked like a clothing store. Above the glass front was a large sign that read  _ Blitzen’s Best _ .

Jason frowned. “Your friends are hanging out in a clothing store?”

“Trust me. This is where they’ll most likely be,” Magnus said, and he pushed open the door. Most likely didn’t sound promising.

Inside the store were two men. One was tall and lanky with pale skin and hair that looked almost translucent. His all black outfit was topped off with a red and white checkered scarf.

The other was studier, well dressed in a forest green suit that contrasted his dark skin. He was hanging up some clothes when Magnus caught his attention.

“Magnus!” he greeted. “It’s been a while!” 

He pulled Magnus into a hug. The other merely waved.

“You should have told us you were coming,” he said.

He grimaced. “It was kind of last minute.”

The one with the scarf made a series of quick hand gestures.

“Oh, you  _ knew _ they were coming? And didn’t bother to tell me?”

Scarf guy smiled and made some more hand motions. Magnus laughed.

“Anyway, this is Blitzen and Hearthstone. They should be able to help us.”

Blitzen scanned their faces. “Good to see you again Cyra, nice scarf.” She smiled. Blitzen frowned when his eyes landed on Jason and Nico.

“Who’s this?”

“That’s sort of why we needed your help.” As he spoke, Magnus continued more hand signals. They were less fluid than Hearthstone's--who must be deaf. “This is Jason Grace. Roman demigod--”

“And an einherji.” Blitzen finished, eyes wide. “You found more of your cousins friends?”

“Yeah. But we needed to catch up with you before we headed off.”

“Headed off?” Blitzen raised an eyebrow. “Please don’t tell me you’re going on another quest.”

“Well, it’s not my quest. Jason here has some unfinished business with ex gods and Roman Emperors.” 

“Sounds fun. Hearth, have you been seeing any possibilities in the runes, besides our friends visiting us and you not telling me?”

“Are the runes working? Because in Valhalla, when they tried to find out Jason’s parentage, he got the perthro rune. We thought it might have something to do with the communication issues..”

Hearth looked intrigued, and signed something.

“No issues with the runes,” Magnus interpreted. “But perthro denotes uncertainty. There isn’t runes for Roman gods. Or,” Magnus frowned. “Or the chosen rule could be interpreted separately from his parentage, and could be suggesting you to take a chance of some kind. Hmm.”

“That doesn’t help us much,” Cyra said.

“Rune’s aren’t concrete,” Blitzen said. “They’re guides more than anything. Was there anything else you saw?” He glanced at Hearth, and sighed. “I was afraid of that.”

“What?’ Magnus asked.

“It looks like we’re going with you. Do you know where you’re going?”

“New York,” Jason added.

“Excellent,” he replied, despite not sounding enthused. 

“Are you alright to just leave the store?”

“Yep.” He switched off the lights and flipped the OPEN sign to CLOSED. 

“Ready?”

“Almost.” Blitzen pulled on a large floppy hat and a ski mask. It was quite an accessory combo.

They headed out of the store and onto the open sidewalk.

“How are we going to get to New York?” Jason asked. “And don’t say shadow travel.”

Nico rolled his eyes. “I wasn’t going to. Anyway, we’re going to drive.”

“Um, Nico.” Jason scratched his neck. “Aren’t uh, fourteen?”

Nico smiled, barely. “I remind you that I’m closer to eighty, Jason. But you’re right, I can’t actually drive.”

Alex cracked her knuckles. At least, Jason was pretty sure Alex was a girl at the moment. “I can drive.”

“Nope,” Magnus said.

Cyra smiled. “I’ve got this. I have played many games of Mario Kart with TJ, so--”

“Definitely nope.” Magnus said. “Jason, surely they teach you how to drive when you become a praetor?”

Jason tensed. Yeah, he knew how to direct an army. But driving a car? No clue. He had only turned sixteen last year, while they were in Rome. He’d just been too busy since then.

“Grace kids don’t drive.” Nico said, coming in to save him. “After your sister crashed the sun chariot, there’s no way I’m letting you drive.”

“Your sister drove the sun chariot?” Cyra’s eyes widened. “That’s the dream.”

“She crashed the sun chariot,” Nico said. 

“Still,” Cyra said wistfully. 

He held up his hands. “None of you are driving to New York. I need to call up a friend of mine.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me, every chapter, without fail: we're finally getting to actual plot!
> 
> but seriously, things should actually start happening soon. I was not going to write a Magnus story without including Hearth. He's probably my favourite character in that series, though he's hard to write since Jason doesn't know what he's saying. 
> 
> I also love a good road trip, so enjoy that coming up.
> 
> until next time guys! hope you enjoyed!


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> let the roadtrip begin! hopefully it will go smoothly.
> 
> hopefully

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this chapter is a little short, hopefully some of the action makes up for it.
> 
> the next few should come sooner, since I actually have a plan for them.

Within a couple minutes, a bright green minivan pulled around the corner. 

Alex’s eyes widened. “What a colour.”

“Why is it a minivan?” Magnus asked, watching as the car made a perfect park. 

“We needed to fit seven people, plus Jules Albert.” Nico pulled open the door and gestured for them to get in.

“Who?”

The driver in the front seat waved.

Jason flinched. “Your chauffeur is a zombie.” 

Nico gave a small smile. “Yeah. My dad gave him to me for a birthday present.”

“Your dad gave you a zombie driver for your birthday? Greek gods are weird." Cyra shook her head. :Then again I don’t think I’ve seen my mum in . . . almost a century, and she’s never gotten me a birthday present.”

“Do you even remember your birthday?” Magnus asked.

“I’m pretty sure it’s in November,” Cyra said. “It’s hard to remember when your my age."

Nico frowned. “How old are you?"

Cyra started to clamber into the car. “Older than you.”

“Are you sure about that? I was born in the 1930’s.”

“And I was born around the 1530’s, so try again.”

Nico looked mildly shocked, before moving on and closing the door. He headed to the front of the vehicle, and hopped in the passenger seat.

“Let’s go, road trip!” Cyra cheered.

“New York is four hours away,” Nico said. “It’s hardly a road trip.”

“You need to lighten up,” she replied. “You’re worse than Chase.”

Nico did not respond.

The car rumbled to life. Jules able remained fixated on the road. The heavy Boston traffic did not seem to bother him. He didn’t talk much either. Cyra handled that, talking to Nico all about Apollo, the other camp. In turn, he asked about the Norse worlds.

“Can you talk a little quieter?” Magnus asked from the backseat.

“Fine,” Cyra replied.

Nico glanced between the two of them. “What is with this grudge?”

Before Cyra could open her mouth, Magnus interrupted “She stole my falafel!” 

"What?" Jason muttered. In the few days he had been here, he had wondered when their arguing was going to erupt. But he did not expect the cause of it to be _this_.

Cyra turned her head to look at Magnus “Maybe if you didn’t leave falafel lying around--”

“It was in my room,” he snapped.

She rolled her eyes. “The rooms you knew I clean regularly. I wasn’t going to leave perfectly good falafel all by itself.”

“Do you know how much of an effort it was to get that falafel?”

“Just get your friends to drop by with some more. And my breakfast that you _stole_ from me while you’re at it.”

“I was hungry because you took my food--”

“Is that all?” Jason interrupted.

“Is that all?” Magnus scoffed. “You clearly don’t understand the value of a good falafel. But no, there’s more.”

Alex shook his head. “We talked about this. What were you expecting from monopoly to the death?”

“I was expecting someone to play by the rules!”

“Are you saying I cheated?”

“I saw you take money from the bank.”

“You have no proof.”

“So you stabbed me?”

She shrugged. “I wanted Regent Street. I had the other two cards. If I killed you, I get to claim it.”

“That is not how monopoly works.”

“It is in Valhalla! I’ve been around since the game was invented. I know how it works.”

“Then two weeks ago you killed me in training. What happened to the floor nineteen team?”

“It was a Tuesday. Free for all combat.”

“Still!”

“I told you, that’s just Valhalla stuff.”

“That’s it,” Alex yelled. “If I am going to be stuck in a car with you guys for the next four hours, and maybe more, you need to get over this. No more fighting.”

They stared at him.

“If there is any more arguing, I am going to throw one of you out the car window.”

Magnus smiled at him. “You wouldn’t throw me out the window.”

“Then you don’t know me.”

Magnus blinked a few times, before settling back into his seat.

The car slipped back into quiet.

Jason rested his head against the window. Within half an hour, the cityscape had disappeared, with the outside becoming green hills and tall trees. He let it all drift past him. Gods, he was tired. Not sleeping was catching up to him. 

Jason closed his eyes, and fell back into dreams. 

This time, he envisioned someone else talking with Nero. A woman, taller than him, with long dark blond hair. She seemed to radiate a harsh power. 

“Our source, uh, didn’t mention that they had left the hotel," she said. "But we believe the boy is heading towards New York.”

Oh no. They knew about their plans. The question was how? Apparently, there was a ‘source’ in the hotel, but this person didn’t reveal their travels. They did leave in a hurry only a little while ago.

Nero did not respond, only frowned

“I’ve sent someone after them, and that should prevent their arrival--”

“He won’t be a problem,” Nero interrupted. “Apollo knows that this is his task. He has too much guilt to bring him along. And once the God is out of the way, the next steps can take place..” 

“Yes,” the woman drawled. “That won’t be a problem."

The silence sat between them for a few moments.

“And the girl?” the woman asked, a smile on her face.

Nero sighed, and the dream melted away.

Jason blinked, adjusting to the light. The nap did not restore him as much as he would have liked.

“Oh good, you’re awake,” Cyra said. “We’re in Connect-ticut.”

“Connecticut,” Magnus corrected.

“That’s what I said.”

Magnus shook his head, but didn’t fight her, probably because Alex glared at him.

“So we’re almost there--”

_ Thunk. _

Something hit the window, cracking the glass. Jason jerked his head backwards. 

“What was that?” Alex yelled. 

“Uhh--” It had looked like an arrow, but what kind of arrow could pierce glass?

Another one hit the other side of the vehicle.

“Let’s go, Jules,” Nico said.

The car’s speed increased. Jules-Albert seemed to drive with complete precision yet undeniable recklessness. If Jules could drive like this and Nico was fine with it, well, Jason would hate to see his sister’s driving.

They overtook the other cars, zooming down the highway. The cars let out a chorus of beeps, but Jules’ attention didn’t waver. 

Another three hit the back of the car.

“How is he following us?” Alex asked. “If his in one of the cars, there’s no way he can keep up with us.

“Nope,” Jason breathed. “He’s  _ flying _ .”

He pointed outside the car, where a man with a bow hovered. He had long black hair pulled out of his face, and an emotionless glare. 

Hearth rapidly signed something to Blitzen, who’s eyes widened.

“Oh no,” Blitzen said. “That’s Vali, the God of Revenge.”

Magnus frowned. “I thought Vidar was the God of revenge.”

“They’re brothers. They probably have some . . . similar characteristics,” he stammered. "But Vali was born specifically to kill Hoder, after he accidentally killed Baldr. Now he roams the nine worlds, following the orders of any gods who want vengeance. And he never misses a shot.”

Another arrow hit the window, Jason ducking his head just in time. The window shattered, spraying glass on the inside of the car. Magnus tugged at the runestone around his neck, and Jack appeared

Of course. Nero wanted revenge on him. His choice of opponent was purposeful. Stopping Jason was the easiest way to get back at the camps after killing the other members of the triumvirate. He had definitely made some allies with the norse. This must be who the woman sent, though he didn’t know who  _ she  _ was. And now was not the best time to mention his dreams. 

“Take the exit,” Nico yelled, and Jules responded instantly. The car swerved to the right, slamming Jason against the door. He nearly flew out the open window, but Cyra grabbed onto him. 

Out of the edge of his vision, he could see Vali following them. The surprise turn wasn’t successful as he hoped.

“How do we get rid of him?” Jason asked.

“We can’t kill him,” Blitzen said.

“I thought he wasn’t immortal.”

“He’s destined to survive Ragnarok. No matter what, there will be no way to kill him.”

“Then how do we stop him?” There had to be some kind of weakness, some kind of plan to come up with. Romans worked together, and he needed their Norse expertise at the moment.

“With a whole lot of luck. Vali was born for the sole purpose of seeking revenge on Hoder. He has no mercy or regret. He follows orders, not morals. And the best marksman there is.”

Great. Jason loved unstoppable enemies.

Another impact rumbled through the car, this time towards the front. Instantly, the car began to spiral. 

“He got our tyre!” Nico yelled

Jules-Albert did his best to regain control, furiously spinning the wheel. But it was no use; the vehicle slammed into a tree in the side of the road.

The airbags inflated, and Jason gasped. He was alive, as was Cyra and Alex beside him. The trio in the back looked alright, and Nico was already unbuckling his seat belt. Jules-Albert was unlucky, hitting the brunt of the impact, and seemed to have vanished in a pile of dust back to the underworld.

Jason pushed open the rumpled door. “I’m going up.” He flipped his coin, and it materialised into his trusty gladius. Before he could summon the winds, Cyra interrupted him.

“You are  _ not  _ going up there alone,” she said, and pushed off the ground. 

Jason pulled the winds toward him, all followed her into the air.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you enjoyed!
> 
> side note, resources on Vali are limited (as with a lot of Norse mythology) so I have improvised a little, and I want to keep you informed when I do. While he was born to kill Hoder and is supposed to live past Ragnarok, that's about all I could find on him. The stuff about him enacting revenge from the gods was what I made up. I needed someone to ruin their trip, and Norse mythology does not have a lot of general monsters I can send after them :(


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Magnus jaywalks
> 
> also a fight scene i guess

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this one and the next one are short again :(   
> it's just Eventful and I need to break it up so there isn't too much at once

  
  
  


He appreciated the help. It’s not like he wanted to face an unfamiliar god by himself. But he was one of the few who could fly. Jason didn’t have a choice.

Vali met his eyes. Jason hadn’t met Nemesis, only heard Leo’s (fairly exaggerated) recount, but it hadn’t gone well. He wasn't going to take chances with this one.

Vali looked at him with pure contempt, and didn’t waste any time waiting to fight. He launched an arrow towards Jason, who ducked. He thrust his sword towards Vali, but he moved. The god's focus was not on Jason, but on the people below, as he released a shower of arrows below. 

Jason slashed at a few of them, but many still hit the surrounding areas. Nico destroyed a few of them with his own sword. Having powers over the earth wouldn't be too helpful in a situation like this, and he was still in no condition to summon the dead. 

At least the multiple targets must be giving them an advantage.

But Vali was too quick for Jason. Cyra was more in control of her flight, having at least a century of experience, but so far had only managed to slice the ends of Vali's hair.

Hearthstone threw a small stone from his position behind the car. Arcs of light burst from it, surrounding the crash site of the vehicle with a thin spherical mirage. The succeeding arrows bounced off it--like a shield.

Now, his friends were protected, Jason was a target. An arrow thudded into his leg, sending him backwards. Cyra tried to stab Vali’s arm, but he turned, and the knife brushed against his hip.

Jason propelled himself back to the centre of the fight. He struck out his arm, trying to snap the string of Vali’s bow, but it only trembled. What was that thing made of?

At least, it delayed his next shot, giving Jason a chance to strike back. He slashed at Vali’s shoulder.  But even with blood dripping down his arms, his shooting didn’t slow. 

The arrow grazed Jason’s back, between his shoulders. Not even enough to hurt him badly, but enough to spring up a memory.

He saw himself back in the chaos of Caligula’s boat. The last time he saw his friends.

The moment his life had gone out of control.

Jason lost control of the winds and dropped from the air.His back slammed against the already battered roof of the car. His einherjar body was strong, but that didn’t stop falling from fifteen feet high hurting.

Magnus sat beside him on the roof of the car, watching Jack trying to slice at Vali. “I think I have a plan. I need you to have your lightning ready to go.”

“When?”

“As soon as possible. When I tell you, strike.”

He looked up. Currently, Cyra slashed at Vali with her dual knives. She was agile, zipping underneath him and stabbed his leg. Vali flinched, but showed no reaction on his face. Jack managed to stop most of the arrows before they headed to the ground. Either way, a flying sword in your peripherals tends to disrupt your aim, even if you are one of the best archers in the nine worlds. 

“Are you sure this is going to work?”

Magnus frowned. “Between Jack flying around up there, and this, it might kill me. Only one way to find out.”

Jason tightened his grip on his sword, and leaped off the roof of the car. His muscles groaned, but he needed to help out Magnus.

The movement caught Vali’s attention immediately. Good. A closer target was easier to hit. Now he just needed to not die. 

  
  
  


Suddenly, Jason’s gladius slipped out of his hand, without anything to trigger it. He glanced down at Magnus, who was focused on them.

Was that his plan? To disarm Jason? What a lot of help that was. Then he met Vali’s eyes. His bow was gone as well. Cyra’s knives had fallen. Even Jack had vanished. Somehow, Magnus had removed everyone’s weapons, creating a disruption.

Right! That was his cue. Jason furrowed his brow and clenched his fists. Warmth travelled up his arms, power building up inside him. 

He inhaled, and sparks flew out of his fingertips, hitting Vali in the chest. Finally, a true expression washed across his face; pure surprise before he tumbled from the sky, and crumpled onto the ground. 

Jason floated back down to the roof of the car. His shoulders relaxed.

Magnus rose to his feet, looking drained. 

“How’d you do that?” Jaon asked.

“The peace of Frey,” he replied. “Since my dad can use magic, I have some too.”

Norse abilities seemed to vary from greek and roman demigods. What was the influence of magic like? Was it similar to the mist? He wished he could talk to the other demigods at Valhalla. 

“We better get moving," Magnus said. Right.. The quest. "I doubt Vali will be out for long.”

Jason looked around. Jules Albert had vanished, and the car was in no condition to drive, which meant they had to look to other options. The road signs suggested they weren’t too far from Stamford, Connecticut, and could walk there. After that, they could figure out a way to New York. They retrieved their bags, and for some reason, a large sunhat for Blitzen.

The distance wasn’t long, but any walking was difficult with an arrow wound on your leg. Magnus had stopped the bleeding, but almost passed out before getting any further. S o Jason limped along the side of the highway with a bandage around his leg. The rest of the group wasn’t doing much better. Blitzen’s suit was ripped. Hearth was drained from using runestones. Magnus was much the same.

Jason wondered what the cars driving by thought.

After a mile or so, a sign appeared, welcoming them to Stamford, Connecticut.

The city looked nice enough, but Jason was too busy thinking about the next step. They needed a way to get to New York.

Further into the city, the group discovered a visitor info centre. 

"We should be able to find out a route over there," Cyra said. "I'll have a look."

None of them responded.

She raised an eyebrow. "What?"

Jason grimaced. "They might get suspicious if they see a child walking around trying to find a way out of here."

"They might get suspicious about a guy with a large wound on his leg. I'm the least injured, and I'll be back in a few minutes."

With that sentiment, she left.

"Stamford's in Long Isaland Sound," Nico said. "We're not too far from--"

"No," Jason interrupted. "We have a quest." He wasn't ready. He didn't want that on his mind.

"Some of these guys could use healing. It might be the best option."

"There might be other options."

Cyra walked out, carrying a brochure and beaming. “Good news! There’s a train station that can take us to New York here. The next train is an hour away, so we’ll have to wait around until then.”

Nico glanced at Jason, but he didn't respond.

The last thing he wanted to do was wait around more, but there didn't seem to be other options. 

"We could find lunch," he suggested. They hadn't stopped for breakfast on their dash out of Valhalla.

The group decided that was the best option. But not even a minute had passed by while they walked and Magnus called out.

"Stop."

Jason turned his head. What kind of threat had found them now? “What is it?”

Magnus, grinning, pointed across the road, towards one of the shops squashed together. It had a sign written in green that said  _ Fadlan’s Falafel. _

“I've found the perfect spot.”

He and Cyra jogged across the street, disregarding all road rules and making a few drivers angry.  Jason shook his head, and followed them.

“I didn’t know they had locations in Connecticut,” Magnus said. All his tiredness had vanished.

“What is this place?” Nico asked.

“The best Falafel chain in the Northeast. A friend of mine owns one of the Boston locations.”

“I think Amir is more scared of you than your friend,” Alex said.

Magnus shrugged, distracted by the possibility of falafel. 

He pushed open the door. The restaurant was simple, mostly white with accents of orange and green. A row of booths sat on the right side, with round tables dotted throughout the rest of the room. Opposite to the door was the counter, manned by a guy that looked around twenty.

Jason scanned the menu, but decided Magnus might be able to give him a better recommendation.

“I’ll tell you what.” Cyra unhooked her backpack from her shoulder. “I’ll pay.”

The statement surprised both Magnus and Alex.

“That’s the nicest thing you’ve ever done for me.”

“Don’t get used to it, sunshine.” She frowned. “Do you think they take red gold here?”

“They don’t,” someone said.

Jason swiveled, while reaching for the coin in his pocket. The response had come from a woman sitting poised in one of the plastic booths, somehow looking dignified while munching on pita bread and falafel.

“It’s disappointing. Human currencies are _ much _ harder to acquire.” 

She had blonde hair that seemed to glow, even in the dim lights of the restaurant. In fact, her whole body radiated light. She wore intricate jewelry that enhanced the way she looked.She was one of the most beautiful people Jason had ever seen.

There was no doubt about who the woman could be.

“Venus?” Jason said.

“Freya?” Magnus asked.

“Mom.” Blitzen sighed.

The woman grinned. “Boys!”

“And Cyra,” Cyra added.

The goddess, Freya, apparently, frowned, “Do I know you?”

Cyra raised her eyebrow. “Daughter of Sol? Valkyrie? I helped you out a few decades ago?”

Freya shook her head.

“Alrighty,” Cyra said, looking disappointed. 

“But I was so glad I was able to find you guys. Sit down, have some lunch.” She gestured to the seats in front of her. “And we can chat about this quest of yours.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> heck yeah! more gods!
> 
> hope you enjoyed :)


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Freya has a chat. Magnus is bad at flying. And Jason is not having a good time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Freya is kinda hard to write since there's like . . . two scenes of her. I did my best
> 
> hope you enjoy!

Freya bought them a variety of food, and set it on the table. 

“This should be enough for all of you. And heal you up a bit.” Could this goddess do magic the same way Magnus’ dad could? Freya sounded like  _ Frey.  _ Maybe they were related.

Her appearance was familiar. He squinted. Freya looked like a brighter version of the woman he had glimpsed in his dream, that's what it was. Maybe she could give them some answers.

The others began to dig into the food, but Jason paused. Freya watched as he cautiously grabbed a piece of pita bread, her stare unexpected harshness. What was she the goddess of?

“So, you’re the new arrival,” she said.

Jason almost choked on his food.

“Uh, what do you mean?”

“I foresaw the arrival of someone new, someone . . .not Norse. I thought it would be best to try and find you. I’m glad you found Magnus, that makes things easier.”

“Right,” Jason stammered. He wondered how much she knew.

She rested her chin on her hand. “I’ve been looking to the runes more often. Things are happening.”

Just in general, things happening was not a good sign anywhere. 

“I have not been able to contact your gods to ensure they know of the situation--”

“My gods?” Jason interrupted. “You know them?”

“Of course. You can’t navigate the worlds without bumping into another pantheon. There's far too many of them.” Jason didn't want to think about more gods. Freya pursed her lips. “Though they usually stick to Midgard.”

Jason tried to steady his breathing. It made sense that the gods interacted, but the thought still overwhelmed him.

“What kind of things are happening?” Blitzen asked, his face stony. 

“It’s too early to confirm anything. Just suspicions.” Freya frowned, and Jason caught a glimpse of the anger he had seen earlier. This was a powerful goddess, no doubt. “Usually, we keep the other gods updated, so that they know the end of the world might be coming. And they do the same, just to be prepared. What was it most recently? Something in Athens?”

“Yeah,” Jason replied. He didn’t want to elaborate on that story.

“But I, or any of the other gods haven’t been able to get in touch with the Greeks. For a long time, they have been more quiet than usual.”

“We’ve been a bit busy with . . . other things.” If Freya wasn’t going to be descriptive, then neither would he. 

“But I am concerned these things are starting to intersect.”  _ Three sides connect _ . That’s what the prophecy had said. “Certain events are leaving us vulnerable. I am concerned some enemies may be planning something.”

“Any more details you can give us?.”

She sighed. “There’s only so much I can help you. I don’t want to reveal too much, well, there might be nothing.”

“Is that all?” Blitzen asked.

Freya’s shoulder’s drooped. “No, I have another warning. That was the purpose of this visit, I wanted you to be somewhat prepared. Sometime during this trip, you will encounters someone I know--I have foreseen it. Her name is far too powerful to reveal. But she is a skilled sorceress.”

“Why is she so dangerous?” 

"She was once an ally of the Vanir, but now an enemy to us all. She is responsible for much of the gods' earlier conflicts, and although much of that has died down, she will not be afraid to divide us again. And if she has allied herself with your . . . threat”--she must not know about the emperors, Jason thought--“then we should all be afraid.”

Great. Hazel was their magic expert of sorts, but she was in California, and also thought he was dead. He glanced at Hearth, who was watching Freya intently. He would have to ask if he knew who Freya was talking about it

But Freya moved on quickly. “Before you go, I have a gift for you.” Freya pulled the cloak she wore off her shoulders, and handed it to Jason, smiling.

“Uh, thanks,” he said, taking the cloak. It was made with layers of brown and white feathers

“It’s my falcon cloak. It allows the wearer to fly, and reach their destination much faster.”

“Oh!” The cloak was soft and shifted under the weight of his hands. “Thank you, but uh, I can already fly.” A good tip, that Jason seemed to have forgotten, was not to refuse a gift from a god, unless you wanted to die.

Instead, Freya looked intrigued. “I had no idea Greeks demigods could fly! Or is it only you? Either way, Magnus could go with you. You wouldn’t want to go alone, anyway.”

“In that case, I’ll come too,” Alex said. “We can both be falcons.”

“Can’t say no to a flying adventure,” Cyra piped up. “And as your valkyrie, I am supposed to make sure that you don’t die.”

“But . . .” Jason glanced at Nico next to him. “What about you guys?”

Nico shrugged. “We’ll meet you in New York. Big groups of demigods should be avoided anyway. You guys can get a head start on the search.”

“Alright. But no shadow travelling.”

Nico smiled. “No worries.” He turned to Hearthstone. “Can those runes get us some transport?”

Hearth nodded.

“Then we’ll meet you there. You guys can get a head start on finding Apollo.”

“Right.” He felt bad about leaving Nico, after he had gone through so much effort to find him. But he was kind of the leader of this quest, the golden guide, and had a job to do. And searching for Apollo in a city of millions would no doubt be . . . fun.

He stood up from the booth. “Then we better be heading off.” 

He tidied up the remaining rubbish.

“It was good to meet you, Jason. For both of our sake, I hope it does not happen again. But if you do meet any other gods, tell them Freya says hello!”

He nodded, and turned around to through out the rubbish. By the time he looked back, Freya had vanished.

Jason rubbed his eyes, and headed out the door. 

The spring chill welcomed him. It time for the next step in the journey. 

“Today is going to be a good day for birdwatchers everywhere,” Alex said, before transforming into a falcon.

Cyra stretched her arms. “Don’t worry, the glamour will make sure residents of Connect-ticut only see boring, average birds today.”

“Glamour?” Jason asked.

“It prevents mortals from seeing strange, mythological occurences with normal things. So they don’t get too confused, and the world remains a secret.”

“So it’s like the mist.”

Cyra shrugged. “Whatever you want to call it. Are you ready to go?”

“Yep.” He glanced at Magnus, who looked uncertain with the falcon cloak around his arms.

“How does this work?” he muttered.

“Maybe flap your arms a bit,” Cyra suggested. Magnus cautiously lifted his arms a few times before lifting off.

He immediately lost control, almost careening into a lamppost. He lifted higher, legs kicking around.

“Oh wow.” Cyra grinned. “This is going to be fun.” She leaped off the ground to join them. Alex cawed before following.

Jason watched them in the sky. He waved at Nico, and rose into the air. He sped up, to reach the others. They weren’t too far ahead, all he had to do was follow Magnus’ screaming. 

Jason loved to watch the world pass by below when he flew. It helped him distract from how exhausted it made him. There were dense forests and rolling hills, with the occasional group of cows dotted around. 

They flew for less than an hour before Magnus called out.

“I think I’m heading down!” He was still barely in control. His arms fluttered aimlessly. It was a wonder he was still in the air. 

Jason looked down. They weren’t anywhere near the city. Where was the cloak guiding them to? 

He pulled the winds around him, and began to lower. He stretched out his legs, and made a comfortable landing in the fresh dirt.

Magnus, on the other hand, tumbled from the sky and collapsed onto his face. “I don’t think I like flying.”

Freya’s cloak looked intact. The rest of Magnus, less so. He dusted the dust off his clothes.

Cyra landed beside him. “Nice job, Chase.”

Magnus only groaned.

Jason exhaled. Being back on the ground always took a few moments to adjust to. The change from rapid to movement to normality sometimes dizzied him. 

Alex flapped to the ground, and transformed back into his human form. “Freya said the wings would take us wherever we needed to go.” He scanned the surroundings. “But we already had lunch.”

Jason looked around. They were in a field with careful rows of strawberries. Jason didn’t know much about plants, but he thought the vibrant green leaves and fruits like rubies were a sign they were thriving. 

The only question was why they had arrived here of all places. There had to be a reason why they were so far from the city. Magnus trusted Freya--Jason doubted she would lead them to the wrong place. 

Alex snatched one of the strawberries, almost glowing red in the sun.

“Alex,” Jason warned, but before he could stop him, he popped the fruit in his mouth. “They could be dangerous!” Jason thought it was a general rule that you didn’t go eating random fruits you find along a quest. That’s how you got stuck in the underworld. 

His eyes widened. “Oh, gods.”

“What?”

Alex sighed. “These have got to be the best strawberries I’ve ever had.”

Cyra plucked a few. “He’s right. Better than any of the fruit I’ve in Valhalla. Try some, Jason.”

He tentatively picked a couple. The bright red liquid ran across his fingers. He had seen this before, in one of the dreams not long ago. 

There was something about this place, Jason couldn’t put it together. The smell of fresh dirt. The strawberries. And the warning in his dreams.

The taste was what did it for him. As soon as he ate the strawberries, Jason understood. Cyra was right--there was only one place with strawberries this good.

“No, no, no.” He looked around, it was as if his vision had been cleared. The sights were familiar now. The fields, the stables. He could see the big house from here.

Jason was not ready to be back here so early.

“What is it? Magnus asked.

He sighed. “We’ve arrived at Camp Half Blood.”

Freya said the cloak would guide them. Why would it bring them here? Unless Apollo had already arrived in New York, and come back here. Jason shivered. He thought he would have a bit more time to prepare himself to see Apollo. To see everyone.

Jason heartbeat increased. Here, in his dream, he had heard voices and laughter of people around him. The others were happily munching on strawberries, but there didn’t seem to be anyone else. April was a little early for Camp Half Blood, which had mostly summer residents, so hopefully--

“Jason?”

He tensed, and slowly turned. Standing opposite him amongst the strawberries was the surprised face of Miranda Gardiner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this whole story is just Jason going 'hmm this reminds me of something . . . sure wish I could figure it out :/'. at least he out it together this time. it's going to be a fun next chapter
> 
> hope you enjoyed!


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> we love surprise visits to camps where everyone thinks your dead! Jason chats with Chiron, figures some things out. but there's something happening in the strawberry fields . . .

It looked like she was going to drop her basket of strawberries. “Jason,” she repeated. “You’re. . .alive”

Jason’s jaw dropped. Of course he had been discovered. By one of the campers who knew him. This was bad.

“How?" she demanded

Now was not the time to explain. He had to talk to Chiron. Without being spotted by anyone else.

“It’s a long story.” He couldn't imagine doing this with people was closer to. Just looking at Miranda's shocked face made him feel guilty.

She rolled her eyes. “I should have seen this coming.” She shook her head. “I mean, I’m surprised. But come one; Leo came back, Percy crashed his own funeral. Who’s going to be next?”

Magnus looked like he was going to say something, but kept silent. 

She chuckled. "Everyone thought you were dead. You're need to tell us the story of how you managed that."

Jason wasn't sure he wanted to. He hadn't expected this reaction. He didn't know what he expected.

“The other campers aren’t going to be happy to see you," she continued. "They all beat up Leo when he arrived, so you might want to prepare yourself.”

“Right. It’s better if they don’t see me at all. Mind if I borrow this?” He snatched up Miranda’s floppy straw hat. Now, not only was he shielded from the sun, but people wouldn’t be able to recognise him, hopefully. 

He looked ridiculous, though.

“What’s the issue?” she asked, a little disappointed about Jason taking her hat. 

“They all think I’m dead.”

She smiled. “So they’ll want to see you.”

“Look, it’s best if I just see Chiron. As soon as possible.” 

Miranda’s shoulders fell, but she kept walking.

They made it through the strawberry fields, onto the edge of the campground. The camp was fairly empty, as it was still only April. Magnus, Alex and Cyra looked around, entranced. It was a different kind of place to the Hotel, the same amount of chaos, less full on killing each other.

“I see you brought some new demigods.” Miranda glanced over the other three.

“Yeah,” Jason mumbled.

“Any idea who their godly parents are?” 

That might help them blend in a little. He just had to come up with an answer quickly. “Uh, Magnus is a son of Aus--uh, Notus.” God of summer, which brought back some memories.

“Who is Notus?” Magnus muttered, quiet enough so that Miranda didn’t notice. He wondered if the seasonal gods knew each other as well. Maybe his old friend Khione knew Skadi.

“A child of Hermes,” Jason continued, his eyes falling on Alex. That would not be a combination he would want to see. “And, um . . .” Cyra’s clear choice would be Apollo, but it might not be the best idea to bring up Lester. Especially if he was here already. The last thing he needed was two surprise faces.

“One of them,” she concluded.

Miranda tapped her on the shoulder. “That’s alright. You’re a little young to be claimed anyway.”

Cyra muffled a laugh. 

“You seem to all be taking it well. It can be a lot to get used to. Anyway, what’s with the matching shirts?” Miranda asked. “What is the hotel Valhalla?”

Jason glanced at the four of them, all with matching emerald green shirts. 

“It’s our . . . team name,” he said. “We had a sports day! At my boarding school. That’s--that’s where I found them.” He nodded. Was it the best excuse? No. But Jason was a tad preoccupied with being in the worst scenario of travel routes.

Miranda blinked. “Your team name is Hotel Valhalla?”

“Inside joke,” Alex suggested. It didn’t seem to quell Miranda’s confusion. 

Before she could keep questioning them the group arrived at the Big House--a two story blue building that towered over the camp. Jason walked up the porch.

“Let’s do this.”

He knocked on the wooden door.

There was a sound of movement from inside, and a few moments later the door opened, with Chrion standing in the doorway.

He wore a familiar expression was he looked down at the group. Jason knew this expression; he had seen it the first time he had arrived at Camp Half Blood. Chrion didn’t need to speak.

_You should be dead_.

“Woah!” Cyra exclaimed. “A centaur!” She was not helping at all.

Jason grimaced. “Can we come in?”

They waved goodbye to Miranda, and headed inside. The group took a seat on the few couches inside. This whole experience was giving him de ja vu.

“Uh, hi, Chiron,” he said.

“Jason.”

The silence sat between them for a few moments, before Chiron broke it.

“How did you come back from the dead?”

Ah. Getting straight to the point. 

“Well, I didn’t quite come back. I’m sort of still dead.” He detailed the experience of the last few days of Valhalla, becoming an einherjar and Norse gods, carefully neglecting to mention the prophecy.

Chiron sighed. He started to pace across the room, the sound of hooves echoing off the walls. “After the Romans, and then Percy and Annabeth’s business with the Egyptians, I knew it was only a matter of time before more gods found us.”

“Did you say Egyptians?” Magnus whispered.

Chiron ignored him. “So who do we have here?”

“Just some demigods I found along the way.” He glanced at the others.

“Alex Fierro, son of Loki, shapeshifter and pottery expert.” He grinned. “Also, dead.”

“Uh, I’m Magnus, son of Frey. Annabeth is my cousin.”

“And I’m Cyra. Daughter of Sol.” She waved. “Does this place take Norse demigods?”

Chiron looked positively overwhelmed.

“Cyra, you’re a Valkyrie,” Magnus said.

“Doesn’t mean I can’t visit.”

“It’s good to meet you,” Chiron interrupted. 

“It’s good to be back,” Jason said. “But, uh, why did this happen? Shouldn't I have ended up in the underworld?”

“I wish I could answer that, but I am just surprised as you are. Things like this shouldn’t happen--I’ve never seen anything like it. Typically, you end up in the afterlife of your heritage or beliefs. I guess since Valhalla residents are  _ chosen, _ it’s a little more flexible. If there’s an issue, you can expect a visit from Thanatos sooner or later.”

Jason gulped. “Lovely.”

“But I think there’s more than the afterlife mishap; why are you here now?”

“Jason leaned back into the couch. "We need to find Apollo. His quest might be at risk.”

Chiron frowned. “How so?

“It’s possible that Python may be the same as Nidhogg,” Jason continued.

“Remind me who that is.”

“Nidhogg is a big snake sort of dragon who lives at the bottom on Yggdrasil and gnaws on its root,” Alex explained. “But killing it would incite Ragnarok, which we’re kind of trying to avoid.”

“So you’re concerned that if Apollo continued with his quest to kill python . . . it would bring upon the end of the world.”

“Basically.”

Chiron nodded. “There shouldn’t be any reason to worry. They are probably separate beings, based on how mythology exists in this world.

“The existence of the Gods is fueled by people's belief in them. That was what caused the emperors to ascend to their status. As long as mortals believe that the Gods are separate, then they remain so. When mortals stop believing, mythological figures can fade away, like Helios, or become mixed up like you were worried about. But the Greek and Norse legacies had remained strong.”

“So they are _not_ the same.”

“It would be unlikely.”

So they had stressed out and began a cross-state road trip for nothing. Well, mostly nothing. 

“Well, that’s kind of the whole reason we came to New York,” Alex said.

“But there’s other issues now.” Jason updated Chiron on their conversation with Freya and her warnings.

He folded his arms. “Unfortunately, I am not well versed in your myths. I don’t know who she could be referring to. But if Nero has made an alliance with any Norse deities . . . that would be bad.”

That, Jason agreed with. Something was happening, whatever it was, it had led them here. More than that, somewhere specific.

“I think it has to do with the strawberry fields,” he said. “There must be a reason that we ended up there of all places. If we needed to be at Camp Half Blood, we should have ended up somewhere more obvious. We need to investigate the strawberry fields.” It might have been chance they ended up there, but Jason had a feeling there was something more.

“What, is there a hidden cavern underground the strawberry garden?” Magnus joked.

“There’s an entrance to the labyrinth not far from here,” Jason replied. “So I wouldn’t put it past the camp.”

Magnus rolled his eyes. “Why is your camp like this?”

“You like in a hotel where something wants to kill you on every floor.”

“Fair.”

“Last question.” Jason turned his attention back to Chiron. “Is . . . is Apollo here?”

“No. As far as we know, he is yet to arrive in New York, but should be there soon. As well as Meg.”

So he had a little bit of time to figure out how to greet Apollo.  _ Hi, I don’t blame you for my death, and also, I’m kind of immortal now! _ didn’t seem to cut it.

“Thanks.” He stood up. “What are we going to do about the other campers? They’re going to figure me out soon.”

“I can’t make that decision for you, Jason. Head off to the strawberry fields, and maybe you’ll come up with a solution.”

He spoke with a combination of authority and kindness that almost made Jason feel guilty. Miranda was right; he needed to see his friends. For their sake. They needed him.

But he needed to save the world first.

“Let’s go.” He grabbed his hat off the seat beside him and pulled it onto his head.

Chiron cleared his throat. “If you do encounter the labyrinth, please do not end up in Peru.”

“We’ll do our best.” He stepped out of the big house.

He ambled back across the campground. A few kids were practicing archery, and some dared to challenge the lava climbing wall

“I thought we would at least meet some gods here,” Cyra sighed. They had somehow stumbled across so many Norse ones, Jason wouldn't be surprised.

“There’s no gods at Camp Half Blood,” he replied. “Though apparently the wine god used to be the camp director. Maybe they’re looking for someone to fill the position.”

Cyra shook her head. It did not satisfy her.

“Camp Jupiter, the Roman camp has a god that guards the city,” he said.

Cyra’s eyes lit up. “What’s he like?”

“He’s a armless statue.”

“Huh.” That seemed to silence her, as she pondered how a god like that would work. 

At last, they reached the strawberry fields. Their only issue was where to start searching. Luckily, there was a person who had a better idea.

“Jason,” some called.

Miranda Gardiner was back--jogging up to them now. “Chiron said you were heading back to the strawberry fields. Apparently you’re looking for something.”

“Yeah,” Jason said. He handed expected Chiron to tell her. “We don’t exactly know what, though.”

She smiled. “I think I might have an idea.” She gestured for them to follow her as she led the way through the lines of plants.

Suddenly, she stopped, and pointed. “There.”

Jason followed her hand, but all he saw was the faint haze of the protective barrier. “What is it? All I see is the edge of the camp.”

“That’s the thing. The barrier should be a few feet further back. I've spent a long time here. It’s been manipulated.”

“What do you mean?”

“Watch.” Miranda stepped towards the spot where the supposed error was, and vanished.

“Uh oh.” Cyra bit her lip. “We better follow her.”

She leaped through. He had no choice now. Jason closed his eyes and stepped through.

When he reopened his eyes, he found himself in an underground hallway of sorts. It smelled like wet dirt and, strangely, apples.

Jason groaned. “Please tell me we’re not in the labyrinth.”

“I don’t know much about this labyrinth, but I don’t think we’re still at Camp,” Alex said, entering after him. “I think we’ve somehow been taken somewhere else. Like the White Mountains.”

“Ah,” Magnus replied.

“Can you elaborate?” Jason asked.

Alex shrugged. “It’s a long story. Lots of almost dying and bowling. But basically, I think someone inserted a portal in the walls of the barrier, but it would appear normal, with a heavy amount of glamour. They wanted to move from one place to the other, but without it being easily detected."

So the person who had done this could use magic. Perhaps it was the notorious sorceress Freya mentioned. 

Miranda frowned. “But why would they do this?” 

“I guess we’ll have to investigate.” Alex lead them through the tunnel. Each step made Jason more nervous. They were heading towards something bad. 

After about two hundred feet, they took a left turn. The passage twisted, until Jason lost track of his direction. At least there was only one route.

As turned out, the tunnel wasn’t too long. Jason could see the end--what looked like a heavy wooden door. Once they reached it, he knocked on the surface.

No answer.

Jason fished his coin out of his pocket, and transformed it to his javelin this time. He pulled open the door.

The room was sparsely furnished, with a bed and a table. There sat a woman in a flowy dress. She had white blonde hair that trailed around three feet from her head. The woman looked young, a little older than twenty, but held a certain kind of power. She had nothing but a basket of apples at her feet. 

When she noticed their arrival, she grinned.“I knew someone was going to rescue me sooner or later.” The woman stood up, and picked up her basket of apples. "It's been so terrible."

“What do you mean?” Jason asked.

“I’ve been stuck here for . . . a while. How did you get past the guards?”

“What guards?”

“The one’s  _ guarding _ me. Otherwise I would have escaped earlier.”

Jason frowned. The tunnel had been eerily empty. Why was this woman here? What was she escaping from?

“Who’s there?” someone boomed. Jason turned around.

In front of him stood two impossible tall figures that had emerged from the connecting tunnels.

“Ah, fuck.” Alex unfurled his garrote. “Jotunar.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fun fact! this chapter made me realise all the boys of the seven have had a time where they died or were presumed to be dead.
> 
> this also gave me an idea for a new fic that I impulsively started writing oops. first chapter will be up soon :)
> 
> hope you enjoyed! this chapter solved some problems and caused a whole lot more.


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a fight scene and a realisation

The figures--jotnar--were almost identical. Both had deep red skin, and glowing eyes. One had inky black hair, the other pale blond. The room seemed to grow warmer as they approached.

They were like giants. Jason didn’t like giants. Hopefully they didn’t need a god to kill these ones. Then they were out of luck.

Unless, this woman was another goddess. Maybe the goddess of apples.  That was Pomona--but this was not the time to remember his research on minor gods. They were about to be attacked. 

The one on the right started to open his mouth, but was interrupted. 

“Hey, giants,” the woman called. Jason turned, just in time to see the woman hurling a handful of strawberries from her basket at their faces. 

The red juice splattered across their face, confusing them for a few moments before their expression shifted to anger.

“Hey, that was supposed to be a distraction!” The woman called out. “Go attack them!”

“Right.” It was a distraction. Time to act. Jason clenched his palms, and called on the power of the sky. He focused on the air around him, hoping to strike these  _ jotnar _ with a blast of lightning. 

Nothing happened.

Nothing but Jason having to duck, and scramble out of the way before one of the Jotun hit him with an axe. 

Of course. They were underground. He hated being underground. All the earth messed with his perception. All the tightness made him feel powerless. He couldn’t create a storm down here, if he even had the strength after all that flying.

His hand tightened around his javelin. There were other ways to fight.

He charged towards the dark haired one. Jason, standing on the jotun’s massive foot, stuck out his arm and impaled their ankle. The giant lifted their leg, and Jason almost flew into the air. He sliced upwards, creating a gash on the side of their leg. 

That was it; the jotun kicked out his leg, sending Jason across the room. His javelin was still jammed into the side of their calf. The giant peered downward, and pulled out the javelin like it was a toothpick. He threw it down the tunnel, past Jason.

At least he could get his weapon now. Down here, it was all that he had.

Jason hauled himself from the dirt floor, and sped down the corridor to pick up his javelin. He watched as Miranda pulled vines around the jotnar’s legs, trying to bring them downward. But the force of them overpowered her, and they broke free. 

The giants seemed to be only attacking them instead of the woman who had been imprisoned. She held some kind of value.

Jason, snatched his spear, and charged forward. The dark haired jotun took notice, and swung one of his axes towards him. He brought the javelin in front of his face, pushing back against the giant. It would be nice if he had a shield around now.

The giant shoved him, and Jason stumbled. He fell backwards against the ground. This wasn't great.

“Get back,” The woman yelled, before raising her arms. Jason was pulled backwards by a branch, ending up around her feet. The earth towards the edges of the room exploded, showering the room with dirt. The display was followed by thick tree roots criss crossing in front of them forming a wall of plants. 

“Do something,” she yelled, straining against the force of the branches. 

Yeah, she was definitely a goddess. No nymph, demigod, or anyone else could have that kind of power. 

Miranda saw what she was doing, and mimicked the motion. More plants grew rapidly, fortifying the wall in front.

The defense didn’t last; the pair of giants combated the plants with a wash of flames bursting from their hands.

“Fire giants,” Magnus muttered. “Of course they’re fire giants.”

The destruction seemed to hurt the mystery goddess. The more the vegetation was burned away, the more it pained her, until all of it was ash. She fell to the floor, her apples spilling out of the basket.

They needed to think of a plan.

The rest of the team was not fighting cohesively. Alex had transformed into a towering bear, which made it difficult to strategize with him. Magnus deemed to be having a conversation with his sword, mid battle. 

“It’s going to tire you out,” the sword said.

“So will dying,” Magnus replied.

Jason ducked as another axe almost collided with his face. He needed to focus. Time for him to engage one of his favourite strategies; distract and cause havoc until a plan formed. 

He leaped towards the jotun, the einherjar strength coming through. He took a page out of mystery goddess’ book, and launched his javelin at the white haired jotun’s face. It hit their eye, and they stumbled backwards. 

It gave Magnus a chance to take charge. He released Jack. The sword flew across the room and towards the jotnar. 

The pair of giants looked shocked to see a sword floating towards them, and even more shocked to see it stab one of them in the chest. 

The white haired fire giant, disappointed about being stabbed, was too distracted to prepare themself for a second blow. Jack struck again in their stomach, before zooming across and striking between his shoulders.

Jason winced.

The giant collapsed.

Alex chose this moment to target the other jotun. He morphed from his form as a large bear to a small wren, and fluttered upward. Once he had reached their head level, he transformed again; back to his human self. He leaped onto the jotun’s shoulder. Carefully balanced, he pulled out his garotte again. In a swift motion, he sliced off their head. 

The jotun went limp. They slumped onto the floor beside the other. 

Slowly, the flames died out. The room started to smell less of smoke and more like dirt again. And apples.

Magnus h- fived Alex. “Nice job.”

Alex smiled, and planted a kiss on Magnus’ cheek

“Stop,” he said, holding back a smile. “We almost died.”

“And?”

Magnus laughed.

Jason picked up his javelin. He was glad that the fight had concluded, but he hated not being able to do anything. He had stood there, helpless, watching Magnus and Alex handle the attack that happened at  _ his  _ camp. He was supposed to look after them, and he had done nothing. 

Sure, he didn’t have his powers underground. But normally he could hold himself. Something was bothering him.

He frowned. Too many thoughts swirling around.

Jason turned his attention back to the plant goddess. She had started to sit up, and gathered her apples back into her basket. 

“I cannot thank all of you enough. I have been stuck inside this place for so long, with no way out.” She took a bite out of one of the fruits. “We should get out of here.”

Jason focused on the metal of the javelin. It shrunk back down to a coin. “Will the portal still be there?”

“Guess we’ll have to find out,” Alex said, still clutching Magnus’ hand.

“C’mon, Jack,” Magnus said. The sword flew back into his palm, and shifted back into its runestone form. 

He almost instantly went limp.

“Ah, shit. Forgot about that.”

Jason’s eyes widened. “What happened?”

“I take on the effects of whatever Jack does when he returns to me. I was already tired from flying . . “

“Idiot,” Alex muttered. He hoisted Magus’ arm onto his shoulders for support.

They moved back through the hallway. Post battles always made Jason jittery. He was never certain it was over. Something else could jump out and attack them.

But he arrived at the portal safely, and crawled back out into Camp Half Blood.

“Ahh, back to the strawberry fields.” smiled.

“You recognise this place?” Jason asked.

Her expression fell. “Unfortunately. This was where I was kidnapped.” 

“Why were you kidnapped?”

“Well, I’m not quite sure. It’s likely they wanted my apples.”

Jason glanced at her basket. They looked mostly ordinary--definitely bright and ripe. It was only then he noticed the subtle glow of gold around them. The fruit held power.

“How did I not realise it earlier,” Alex exclaimed. “Healing apples, kidnapping . . . you’re Idunn!”

“Who?”

“Idunn,” she repeated. “Goddess of youth, springtime, and apples.”

Of course she was a goddess, if it wasn’t already obvious from her displays of power. They had some luck, running into gods all the time. Not normal for a demigod.

“Tired,” Magnus groaned.

Cyra rolled her eyes. “Stop complaining, sunshine.” 

“I just killed a giant!”

“Your sword killed a giant.”

“Don’t worry,” he said. “You’ll be able to get healed once we head back to the big house.”

Jason was more concerned about how he was going to explain how he found a goddess living just through a portal outside the camp

He was lucky he didn’t get spotted on the way back to camp. Miranda’s hat had been burned by the fire giants, which she didn’t look happy about.

The big house loomed ahead.

Jason tapped on the door. Chiron answered again.

“You’re back.” He did not look overly excited.

“We are,” Cyra said, “And you won’t  _ believe _ what we found.”

“Hello!” Idunn greeted. “You must be the owner of the strawberry fields.”

The look on Chiron’s face was worth not giving her any context.

After a few moments of puzzlement, he frowned. “Who are you, and how did you get into this camp?”

“I’m Idunn,” she said, deciding that was enough of an introduction. She stepped through the doorway.

Jason sat down on the couch. “Is Solace here?”

“He should be in the infirmary,” Chriron said, pointing to the adjacent room.

“Alright,” Jason said, trying to remain calm. "Magnus here could use some healing." He was going to see one of the people who knew him. While he was supposed to be dead.

It would be fine.

“I can go and get him,” Chiron said. “Just . . .” His eyes scanned the other four, praying they would make a mess. “Stay here.”

The passing time stretched longer than he thought was possible. The room was right next door. But every second made him more nervous. He was going to see someone who thought he was dead.

Because Magnus needed healing. That was it.

The door creaked open. Jason sat up straighter.

“What’s the . . .” Will’s eyes fell on Jason. “ . . .Issue?”

Jason didn’t know what to say. The sentences weren’t forming in his mind.

Will sat down across from him.

"Jason. I . . . see that Nico found you."

“Yes. Not where he expected. He didn’t bring me back . . . if that’s what you're wondering."

Will looked more relaxed, glad to see his boyfriend had not being trying to raise the dead. 

“So, um, what are you doing here? We thought you were . . . dead.”

“I am,” Jason said, which was probably not the best way to start. “I mean, I did, and I was reborn as an einherjar. I was sent to the Norse afterlife.”

Will frowned. “Norse?”

“The Norse gods still exist today, alongside the Greeks and Romans. Because I was chosen, I ended up in the Hotel Valhalla, destined to fight at Ragnarok.” Despite his rapid heartbeat, this wasn’t so bad. He just had to explain himself to his friends, and everything could return to normal, besides the fact he was sort of immortal, and they would age far beyond him--

“Cool,” Will replied. His expression suggested he did not think it was cool.

“And then we kind of got a prophecy. To help out . . . Lester.”

Will sighed.

“We believe Nero is working with Norse deities, which might have something to do with Idunn here.”

The group turned to the goddess. She stopped eating one of her apples.

“What is it? Oh. I was kidnapped.”

Jason raised an eyebrow.“Can you tell us a bit more about what happened?”

“Ok, so one of the other goddesses told me that there were these  _ incredible  _ strawberries not far from New York City. They thought they were so good, they might even have similar healing properties to my apples. I had to go and check for myself!

“So I found these strawberries, and I tried them. They were amazing--you need to tell me your gardening secrets--but they didn’t seem to have any healing properties.” She sighed. “So I was about to head back, when I was ambushed by the jotnar you saw, and taken away to a room where I couldn’t escape.” 

“Who was it?” Magnus asked. “The person who told you to go the fields?"

“Look.” Idunn fiddled with her hair. “I know I’ve seen her around, in Vanaheim and other places. But I can’t remember her name at all.” She clicked her tongue. “It’s so embarrassing.” 

“So you don’t know anything about the woman who kidnapped you?”

“No. But I’m pretty sure she wants my apples.”

“Was it Loki?” Alex asked.

“I thought Loki was a guy,” Jason said.

“Loki can be whatever he wants,” he replied. “It causes a lot of problems.”

“While that is true, I don’t think it was Loki.” Idunn shook her head. “He aided with my kidnap the first time--”

“You’ve been kidnapped before?”

Idunn shrugged. “It happens. They always want my apples. Either way, this person didn’t look like Loki. I’ve seen her before. Gorgeous in a terrifying way, with dark blonde hair.”

The woman Jason saw in his dream, that had sent Vali. The sorceress that was after them. That confirmed it was connected.

She said she had an agreement. Something to give Nero. He wanted these apples, and would give her something in return.

“I think it’s some kind of trade,” Jason said. “But why would Nero needs healing apples?” That would make his upcoming fight with Apollo more of a struggle, if he kept healing himself. 

Idunn's expression tightened.“They don’t just heal you. They keep the gods immortal. Without them they would die.”

That changed things. This must have been what Freya was concerned about--she knew Idunn was missing, and how that would harm the gods.

Nero wanted the apples

“The other two emperors died," Jason said. "So they weren’t immortal like we thought.”

“We knew that,” Chiron said.

“Maybe they thought the same thing. And now it's changed, since Camp Jupiter killed the others. Nero wants some kind of protection."

Chiron frowned. “Oh no.”

Jason sighed. “Nero was trying to find another way to remain immortal.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been waiting for this chapter for so long :)
> 
> hope you enjoyed!


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jason's still having a crisis about being sort of immortal and not fitting in at either camp. and perhaps,,, a bit of cyra backstory, as a treat

Of course. The sorceress kidnapped Idunn to form an alliance with Nero. She gives him the key to immortality, which he needed after Caligula’s New Helios plan fell through. He needed extra protection. If he succeeded they would have no hope of defeating him.

Nero wanted the apples from the sorceress, and he would give her . . . what could he give a minor god? What kind of power did he have to offer? He had basically made himself a god through eternal memory, but if the sorceress was already immortal, she wouldn't need that. 

There was also the issue of the other minor god, or what they assumed was a minor god. The other man Jason had seen interacting with Nero so long ago (or two days ago, whatever) who had warned that he arrived in Valhalla. He still hadn’t determined how he had figured that out. The ‘source’ that Nero mentioned must have told them. There was someone back in Valhalla that was onto him.

But they were left behind now. They weren't a worry.

So there was Nero, and the two people who were working with him. Three people. He could keep track of three people. He just had to figure out how the three sides joined.

“But now that we’ve rescued Idunn," Magnus said. "He wouldn’t be able to fulfill that.”

Alex frowned. “More than that, would he have realised? As far as he or the sorceress knows, Idunn is still in her prison. We’re a step ahead, for now.” 

Saying that out loud was just tempting the fates. “So we need to go to New York. Now. Before we lose that advantage.”

“How? Nico’s there waiting for us, so he can’t summon his driver again--”

“Is that where he is?” Will asked. 

“Yeah. He’s getting a head start on the search for Apollo.”

“We could lend you one of the Delphi strawberry trucks," Chiron suggested. "Argus should be able to drive you. And then . . .”

He clenched his fist. “We find Apollo. We fight Nero, Python and his new allies.”

All the eyes focused on him. He still hadn’t gotten used to it. 

They had a plan. It would almost certainly go wrong but hey, he had gotten used to it by now. It was part of the job. 

“Before we go.” Jason turned to Will. “Would you be able to heal Magnus?”

"Please," Magnus added.

“Shouldn’t be a problem.” He sat down beside beside Magnus, and touched a hand to his shoulder.

“Fuck!” Will drew his hands away.

“Will,” Chiron chided.

“Sorry.” He blinked. “You’re just a fast healer. Very . . .  _ receptive _ to my abilities. I wasn’t expecting that.” He slowly placed his hand back, but Jason noticed shock pass through his eyes.

“Yeah, I’ve heard that." He looked fairly unfazed, but it might have been because he was tired. "I’m a bit of a healer myself.”

“You are a  _ Norse _ demigod, right?”

“Yep. Son of Frey.”

Will nodded. “Just glad to hear I don’t have another sibling.”

“That’s understandable.” Magnus looked down at his hands. “Huh. I’m glowing.”

Will raised an eyebrow. “Is that . . . normal?”

“It happens whenever I heal people. I guess it works when  _ I _ get healed too.”

He frowned. “I don’t glow.”

“Don’t worry, you aren’t missing out on much. Mostly people making fun of you.” 

"Because you look like Rapunzel," Alex said. 

Magnus rolled his eyes.

“What are we going to do about Idunn?”

“It would probably be best if she stayed here,” Chiron suggested. “If Nero truly wants the apples of immortality, he will stop at nothing to get them again. She needs to be safe.” 

“Wonderful! I can help you out with the strawberry fields. It’s all about the right amount of--”

“That would work,” Jason interrupted. “Can we please get moving now?”

He shouldn’t be rushing things. He had been taught his whole life to carefully plan, not to be impulsive. Yeah, plans almost always fell apart, but it still felt wrong to ignore all his teachings. 

They had a plan. Go to New York. Find Apollo. And try not to die again.

He would have plenty of time on the journey to figure out the rest. 

“Be careful,” Chiron warned. “Even without his triumvirate, Nero is still incredibly powerful. There will be things you can’t plan for.”

“Don’t worry.” Jason smiled. “I came back from the dead once.”

“And don’t do it again,” Cyra said. “It was an effort to fly you all the way to Boston.”

Will raised an eyebrow. “Boston?”

“That’s where the entrance to Valhalla from the mortal world is,” Cyra replied.

“Why Boston, of all places?”

Jason shrugged. “All the good spots were taken.”

Magnus raised a hand. “It’s actually got a lot to with the viking’s history, and their travels--”

“Like I said, you’re sounding like Blitz,” Alex said. “Let’s get out of here.”

"We'll see you all later." They picked up their stuff and left the Big House.

He traipsed across camp, looking at all the familiar sights and familiar people. He didn't want to leave it behind again. He would get used to Valhalla evantually, but he didn't want to have to adjust to a new home again. Not that he had another choice. He was so sick of moving around for the god's

Jason stepped outside the Camp’s magic boundary. Would he ever come back here again? Would he be welcome? 

A few minutes later, a van pulled in front of them. It had a large logo on one side that said  _ Delphi Strawberry Service.  _ It felt appropriate to help rescue the finale oracle, the oracle of Delphi in such a vehicle. 

In the drivers set sat Argus, around fifty of his eyes watching Jason. Argus made Jason nervous. Not because he had eyes covering his entire body, but he was kind of a servant of Hera, who decidedly didn’t like him. Lucky he wasn’t too talkative. If he wanted to have a chat, Cyra was there, already looking fascinated by him. 

Jason pulled open the door. There were three rows of seats, plenty of room for the four of them. 

Jason sat against the window, hoping to get some time to rest for a bit. The last few hours had been so busy. They had met two gods, been attacked by another and started to piece together Nero’s plan.

Jason’s piece was disrupted when Cyra sat beside him, ignoring the other available seats. That was fine company was good, he could distract himself for a little while

She reminded him of the newer campers, full of wonder. While he was at his school, he kept thinking about going back to Camp Jupiter. Should he have gone back? He wouldn’t have a chance anymore. 

Cyra interrupted him. “So, you were at a different camp, right?”

“Yep. Camp Jupiter, in California.”

"Was it different to this one?"

"Yeah . . ." Camp Half blood had felt so foreign initially. But he had gotten used to it. Valhalla was a whole other level of unfamiliarity. "It was more structured. Everyone had a place, a specific place in the legion."

"What was yours?"

"I . . ." He frowned. "Well, I was the praetor, which is kind of the head of the legion. But I started another role, designing shrines for minor gods."

"that's right. Your project. There's so many minor gods in the Norse pantheon. Do you think you would expand your project?"

He chuckled. "Maybe."

“Tell me more about the Hunters.” This girl was a vacuum for information. But it kept him distracted from the imminent threat. It wasn't so bad.

“Cyra, you can’t join everything. I doubt Chiron would let you back into the camp.” He probably had to deal with enthusiastic, mildly annoying campers all the time. What was one more?

“You’re right. My mother would probably disown me if I did. Hanging out with a  _ moon _ goddess?” She sighed. “I know. I just like to be a part of things. That’s why I joined the Valkyries.”

“That’s it?” She talked about wanting to become captain. He assumed there was something more. Then again, he didn’t have a overly big desire to be a praetor--it was just what happened. He was chosen. He was a child of Jupiter. What else was he supposed to do?

She grimaced. “Well, that’s why I agreed to it. There’s so many activities in Valhalla, I’ll get around to all of them. But joining the Valkyries was actually my sister’s idea.”

“What happened to your sister? You . . . I didn’t see her in Valhalla.”

Her expression change suggested he shouldn’t have said anything. But Cyra continued. “Not everyone copes well with being an einherji. Mortal minds can only take so much.”

“Mortal . . . isn’t she a demigod? Like you?”

She shook her head. “Different mothers. I was her only connection to the Norse worlds. Gods, giants, nine worlds, it was too much for her. She thought joining them would help her adjust but . . .some minds aren’t malleable enough to understand.”

Jason thought about Piper’s dad, the way he was fractured after they rescued him. There was a reason their worlds were supposed to be a secret.

“After having their life extended for too long, einherjar can get overwhelmed. Sometimes, if they close themselves off from the world, they can fade away.”

“Fade . . .?”

“Stop existing. She quit the valkyries, and I saw her less and less. Eventually, I figured out what had happened, and then when someone new moved into her room on our floor, all of that was confirmed.”

She stared across at Magnus, who had fallen asleep next to Alex

He and Thalia were together now. If he lost her, after being separated for so long . . . they had a future now. He couldn’t lose himself in immortality.

“That’s why I want to become valkyrie captain. I want to make the most of this. It’s kept me going for the last few centuries. And I enjoy the adventure. I can’t choose my fate, how I died, and might die again. But I can choose how I spend my time.”

“When you say might . . . I thought we were supposed to fight in Ragnarok.”

She nodded. “Where pretty well all of the einherjar will die; I know." She smiled "Unless there’s more to your fate.”

“Like what?”

Cyra bit her lip. “Just something I’ve been thinking about. About the future. Most of the gods die during Ragnarok, including my mother. But after, after Ragnarok, after the world will be destroyed--a new world will rise. A world that is lush, and full of life, ruled by the few remaining Norse gods. A rebirth.” A ball of light grew in her palm. She rolled it around, like a marble. 

“But . . .there’s prophecies. A future cryptically laid out for certain people. They say the daughter of Sol will take over the role of guiding the sun in the new world.” She leaned back in her chair. “I . . . I can’t help but wonder if it’s me. I mean, there’s lots of daughters of Sol, even just in Valhalla. But I like the idea of helping people. Being a valkyrie has kept me going for the last few centuries. It’s given me a sense of purpose in the endless waiting.” 

“Even if I’m not the new sun, I want to make this new life worth it. I  _ have  _ to.” She stared at the window, watching the trees roll by. “My sister convinced me to join the Valkyries. . . . but captain? That’s my choice. I want to keep doing this, to give more people another chance to choose live again.”

“I think . . . I think I understand that.” Becoming pontifex maximus had renewed him, given him direction in life. Not that he hadn’t enjoyed being a praetor, but it had been pushed on him. The son of Jupiter would have been striving for praetor his whole life--what else would he do? It was nice to have something that was his choice, completely.

It could be a constant in his afterlife. His designs and plans--he had a whole lifetime to complete it all now. For once in his life, he had time to take things at his own pace. Yes, his death hadn't ended up the way he expected. There was uncertainty, and separation--but it was a second chance

Maybe that’s why Reyna had joined the hunters. To try and choose her own destiny in her own time. 

He smiled. “You dream big.”

Cyra rolled her eyes. “I know. But that’s the point of dreams.”

Jason relaxed back in his seat. They weren't too far from the city now--he could see the buildings on the horizon. He tapped his fingers on his thigh. The tension was getting to him.

A wash of light started to form in front of him.

“What is that?” Cyra exclaimed, almost leaping out of her chair.

“An Iris message,” he whispered. Jason still hadn’t adjusted to that way of communication. They surprised him every time.

The image became clearer, manifesting into the shape of Nico di Angelo.

“Hey,” Jason greeted.

“Where are you guys?” Nico asked.

“We kind of took a detour through Camp.”

Nico’s eyes widened. “You went to Camp Half Blood?”

“That’s where Freya’s cloak led us to.”

“Why would you need to go to camp?”

Jason thought about the last couple hours. “Uh, that's a whole story. It’s probably best if we tell you when we get there.” 

The truck hit a bump, and Nico’s image wavered. 

He shook his head. “Fine.The good news is, I sent another Iris message to Apollo, and told him to meet me here.”

“You were able to get into contact with him?”

“Yeah. It made things easier. .Though . . . I thought it was best I didn’t mention you.”

“Good idea.” Seeing Apollo would be no worse than Will. Just another person who knew him.

A person who probably felt responsible for his death, and wouldn’t be expecting to see him . . .

He had to focus.

"Where are you?"

"The turtle pond, in central park."

"Why?"

He blinked. "It's easy to find. But t here’s more. We met someone along the way . . . he says he wants to talk to you.”

Jason furrowed his brow. Who would want to talk to him? Someone he knew? An enemy that had intercepted Nico before he arrived?

Someone new stepped into the frame. Beside Nico stood none other than Stig, the song of Holler. What was he doing out of Valhalla? How did he find them? And what could he possibly want to tell them that cannot wait until they came back? 

He gave a nervous wave. “Hi, Jason.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> stig? as a recurring character? you bet.
> 
> I'm sorry this is all so dialogue heavy, my first drafts are usually like that. we'll get to Big Fight soon


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's the stig content you deserve. also some big plot points

Jason updated Argus about the change in destination. He sunk back into his chair, apprehensive.

What could Stig want? It had to be relevant to their current quest. But they hadn’t told him anything about it. They hadn't told him anything. yet here he was.

It could be nothing. But if it was, it could wait until they got back. Either way; they had to go and find out what was up. Nico was with him, so if Stig couldn’t be trusted, Nico was at risk. He couldn’t let that happen.

The Delphi strawberry truck pulled to a stop. Jason pulled open the door and stepped outside into central park. To the right of him sat the Metropolitan Museum. The meeting spot should be a few thousand feet ahead.

In New York, the sun was bright, warm for April. Then again, Jason had grown up in perpetually warm California. He didn’t mind. The day was nice.

He was stalling, and he knew it.

“C’mon.” Cyra tapped his shoulder. “Let’s go and see what Stig wants.”

Magnus frowned. “So he followed us all the way here . . . why?"

"He wanted to talk to us," Jason muttered.

“Like I said, we need to give him a chance,” Alex replied. “He might not be up to anything at all. You can’t base your opinion of someone on their parents.”

Still, something about the situation made Jason nervous. It wasn’t that he was a son of Holler, a god he didn’t even know. Something about him he couldn’t figure out. Maybe his face was familiar, maybe it was a gut feeling, but there was something more going on. 

Jason arrived at the small deck looking over the turtle pond. Thankfully, Apollo and Mag had yet to arrive, and only Nico, Blitz, Hearth and of course, Stig. All of them looked fairly unbothered, so it was unlikely Stig had done anything devious so far. Currently, he sat on the railing above the lake, watching the turtle lift their heads up for air. 

When he noticed them, he leaped off. He almost tripped over, but caught himself, standing up straight to meet Jason’s eyes. 

“Uh, hi.”

“What is it you want to tell me?” He should have gone with a more polite greeting, but his nervousness was building. It didn’t bother Stig, who looked just as afraid.

“I have information that might aid your quest.” The words sounded stiff, like he had rehearsed them.

Jason raised an eyebrow. That wasn’t what he expected. He didn’t know what he was expecting. “How so?”

“Is it possible I could talk to . . .” He glanced behind at Magnus, Alex and Cyra. “ . . . just you?’

Splitting from them was a bad idea, by any standard. Groups were always better. But still, if Stig could help them . . .

“Why?”

“It has to do with you. Specifically. And what’s happening.”

Maybe he knew about why he had ended up in Valhalla, if there had been something more than luck at work. He needed to figure out what info Stig had.

He had his sword. He’d be fine.

“You guys stay here. I won’t be long.”

“Let’s take a walk,” Stig said. 

They started to walk on one of the many twisted paths around central park. 

Central Park was massive, to put it lightly. So much greenery surrounded by a cityscape was such a jarring and beautiful view. He had always wanted to visit some of these places. He and Reyna had all sorts of plans for travel all over the US, but constant monster threats kind of interfered with your time. More than that, the East coast, especially New York, was practically forbidden for Roman demigods, warned that it was a particularly dangerous region. Of course, now he knew why.

“So . . .” Stig dug his hands into his pockets. “Information. For you. About where your quest leads.”

“Yes.”

He took a deep breath“I know what’s happening.There are minor Norse gods,” he said, “interacting with deities from other pantheons. Working together.”

“We knew that.” But how did Stig know that?

A flicker of surprise passed on his face.“Oh. That’s . . . that’s good.”

“Is there more?” If it turned out to be stuff they already knew, that would be disappointing. But at least there wasn't a threat.

“Yes. They’re working together with a Roman king or something, it’s a sorceress, and um--”

He knew about Nero and the others. Perhaps he could provide more detail. “How do you know all of this?”

He grimaced. “I’m not very good at explaining things.”

Jason had a bad feeling about where this could be heading. He hoped he was wrong “Give it a try.”

Stig took a deep breath. “Two days before I died, my dad visited me. He said he would be in contact.”

Jason smiled. “Holler. The god of disaster.”

“The very same. And he kept his word. After my first night in Valhalla, I received a raven from my father. He . . . he told me I was supposed to keep him updated on the happenings in Valhalla. So that,” he grimaced, afraid of his own words. “So that his plans would go smoothly.”

Stig paused, and that was the moment Jason figured it out, why Stig unneased him. He had a certain similarity to the man who was chatting to Nero in his first dream, who brought up his name and turned this afterlife upside down. He hated being right.

“You’re the spy?” 

Which meant the man in his dream was Holler, the god of disaster. Now he could see the similarity.Not identical, Stig’s face was softer without the same sneaky glare. Instead, he looked terrified. This was the 'source' Nero had mentioned. “Not intentionally!” he yelped. “Things got out of hand. I didn’t want things to end up like this.”

“What do you mean?” Jason demanded. So he admitted it. Stig had betrayed them Of all the possibilities of this meeting, that was not the direction he expected this to go. 

“I never wanted to spy on anyone in the first place! But there was no other choice. I couldn’t cross my father. Instead I tried to . . . mislead him.”

Jason frowned. “Explain.”

“For one, I wasn’t trying to spy on you. I was _supposed_ to be spying on Magnus and the rest of them.”

Now it made sense why Stig wanted to speak to him specifically. The others would kill him on the spot.“What?”

“They stopped Ragnarok twice  _ and  _ disrupted a giant’s wedding. They’re notorious for running people’s plans! And they couldn’t have that. So  _ I  _ was supposed to keep tabs on them, and make sure they didn’t figure things out. Which I didn’t want to do! I didn’t choose this role. But I couldn’t get out of it. So instead, I thought I would lead them down the wrong trail . . . I mentioned you. A new arrival, with a bit of attention that I figured would die down soon. Strange people appear in Valhalla all the time; usually they mean nothing. I didn’t realise that the emperor person had a grudge against you!”

Jason didn’t know how to respond. How do you respond when someone admits to betraying you, albeit unintentionally? But he had tried to change his actions--did that make things different?

Stig kept talking. “I didn’t tell them you left Valhalla, or nything after. Once I figured out what had happened, I had to fix things.I don’t know how they figured that out. The sorceress, she’s a master of runes, so that’s probably it.”

“Do you know who she is?”

“Can’t think of any big sorceresses. Nothing really comes to mind, and my father didn’t mention specifics.”

“How do you know so much?”

He shrugged. “I grew up in Sweden. The Norse gods were practically neighbours.” 

Jason could understand. Living at Camp Jupiter since he was four had given him a lot of expertise on Roman mythology, or at least the parts the camp deemed important. 

Stig sighed. “Look, I understand why I might not be the best person for this. I’m the demigod of fucking things up.”

“I’m sure that’s not true.”

“No, that’s practically my ability. I can curse someone with a cold now and then, but my dad’s the god of disaster. My presence seems to amplify misfortune. I mean, I unintentionally caused all this mess.” He chuckled. “Which I’m sorry for. But I can help you. I . . . I _want_ to help you.”

Despite what he had said about sort of betraying them, Jason believed he was genuine. 

“In Valhalla, My job is to die,” he continued.” To die for a bunch of people who didn’t want me in the first place. Everyone expects me to be evil . . . without giving me a chance to prove myself. Don’t I get a say in the matter?”

Jason recalled what Cyra had said about choosing her own destiny--choosing to help others and giving others chances to do the same. She and Alex would want Jason to give him a chance.

“Don’t you remember I helped you? During training?”

“Wasn’t that unintentional?”

“Yes, but it worked. I could do it again, if I figured out to properly use my abilities.”

“We don’t have time for working on that,” he said, harsher than he wanted. Stig looked frightened for a moment. “Sorry. But all of this happening--these are my problems, in my world. I don't want you to have to deal with it.”

“That’s where you’re wrong. Whatever was happening . . . now it's leaked into my world. I need to help you, not just because I need to fix my mistakes, but because I understand the issue.”

"You gave us the info. You did help us."

“But I can do more. First of all, spying goes two ways. Not only did I tell my father some, uh, incorrect info, he gave me a brief outline of his plan.”

Jason raised an eyebrow. “Such as?”

“The main goal of all of this plot.”

“Inciting Ragnarok?” That's what it always seemed to be around here.

“I don’t think so, which he seemed a tad disappointed about.” Jason remembered when Stig had first arrived, Alex had mentioned that Holler and some other minor gods had plans of bringing forward the end of the world. Guess he had made a new alliance. “I believe their plan is currently taking over the world.”

That aligned with what Nero wanted. Take over by controlling all five oracles. If you controlled the future, you controlled everything. 

“And then, like I said he’s working with the king--

“Emperor,” Jason corrected.

“The emperor guys and the sorceress. The three of them created an alliance to first take control of the United States, and then the world.”

That was Nero's plan all along, but now it included Holler and the sorceress. The three of them, coming together . . . 

_ Three sides join _ . 

The line of the prophecy. It was never about Greeks, Romans and Norse working together, but a much more terrifying trio.

He must have shown it on his face. “What is it? Stig asked.

Nero was trying to reconstruct the triumvirate.

Finally, something made sense. That’s why Nero seeked out his new allies.To achieve a similar level of power, back into a strange sort of comfort zone.Then he could take over the United states and eventually the world, without even delaying his plan. Maybe all the worlds, now that it was a possibility.

“I know what he’s doing. All of them. 

“The emperor?”

Jason nodded. “We need to get back and tell the others.”

“Can I . . . come with you?”

Ah, back to the start.

Still Jason was uncertain. Stig could help, but Jason didn’t want to get another person involved--not after what had happened to himself. He didn’t have an answer just yet.

Either way, it didn’t matter. He had bigger problems. 

About two hundred feet away, close enough to hear their conversation, stood a pair of people. A boy with curly brown hair who looked around sixteen, and a shorter girl in green jeans (Alex would approve).

“I assure you, I am not lost!” The boy squinted at the map. “If I can just--”

“I used to live here. Let me navigate.” The girl reached for the map, but the boy lifted it higher.

“I know what I’m doing.”

The younger girl scoffed.

Shit. This was against the plan. He wasn;t supposed to see them without the others.

“We need to go back to the turtle pond,” he hissed. “Now.” 

“What is it?” Stig looked around. “Monsters? Gods?”

“Worse. Someone who knows me.”

He started to pick up his pace. Once he got back to Nico and the rest of them things would be easier to explain, but he couldn’t face Apollo alone.

Stig started to run alongside him. “Who are they?”

“He’s sort of the cause of this. I can explain properly later.” Should he? He wasn’t certain about Stig. While he didn’t intentionally hinder them, things might have been different if he hadn’t gotten involved.

It was too much to think about for now. He had to keep moving before they saw him. Did moving faster make him more noticeable? Maybe he should just walk casually. 

"We should ask someone for directions."

They sounded closer. How did they get closer. He couldn't look behind him.

"I don't need help navigating! You sound like Hermes."

He could hear Meg getting closer. His heart was beating too fast now. He had to get back.

"Excuse me, can you tell me where I can find the turtle pond?"

And she met his eyes, and it was too late.

"Jason?" she whispered, before blinking a few times.

He didn't have any words. This is what he was trying to avoid.

"It's not to far from here," Stig said, doing his best to rectify the situation.

Jason looked up towards Apollo. The unassuming teenage boy looked like he had seen a ghost, which wasn't far from the truth. 

He stood there watching, achingly long before he spoke."Jason Grace?"

This wasn't the way things were supposed to go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> should I stop being mean to Jason? perhaps. but I am also enjoying it
> 
> also shout out to that once person who commented stig was 'heroic, probably'. you really changed the course of his arc. after I decided he was going to have a bigger part, initially I was going to have him properly betray everyone. but I like where he's going now :)
> 
> anyway hope you enjoyed!


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> sometimes, the best weapon you have is a ukelele

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey, it's been a little while since I updated. this story is still alive, I promise! lockdown ended where I liveright after I posted the last chapter, and I had to get used to not having free time anymore :( but I'll do what I can.
> 
> anyway, hope you enjoy and stay safe!

Why did this keep happening? Couldn’t he have control over one thing? He had to surprise everyone who found out he was dead.

Lester’s expression was horrified, to say the least. 

“Apollo,” Jason replied. He had been dreading this moment for so long. Now, it was here. Standing in front of him.

He stood silent for a few terrible moments. Jason watched as Meg fiddled with her rings--maybe from nervousness, or a preparation to attack.

And then he spoke. 

Apollo’s brow creased, and his face morphed from shock to the anger Jason associated with the gods. A fraction of it; but it was there no doubt. “What kind of trick is this?”

This was a new reaction, complete disbelief. Not what he expected. “It’s me. I know . . .”  _ I should be dead _ . “But I can explain--”

“You aren’t Jason," he stammered, almost trying to convince himself. "Nero must have sent you. Whatever you are.”

“I am,” he pleaded; that was all the words that he could get out of his mouth. 

“No.” Apollo squinted. “Jason . . . he had a scar on his lip. You . . . you are some kind of poor copy. He's . . . not you.”

Ok, that hurt. The vanishing scar had come back to haunt him. 

But before he could explain further, Lester pulled out his ukulele from his bag and slammed it against his head.

Jason stumbled backwards and fell into the grass. Couldn’t he go one quest without being hit in the head by something? 

“Whoa!” A sword materialised in Stig’s hand--long with pale metal that looked almost white--bone steel. “I thought you knew this person!”

“What was that for?” Meg demanded. At least, he was pretty sure it was Meg speaking. Being hit in the head with a ukulele tends to mess up your perception. 

“What are you?” Lester yelled, ignoring the others. towering above him. Some kind of shapeshifter . . . some kind of mist disguise?” He squinted, still clutching the ukelele in front of him. “What do you want?”

He groaned. “I am  _ Jason.” _

“What if it is Jason?” Meg said.

“It can’t be Jason.” His voice was trembling. “That’s not possible.” The unspoken words hung in the air. 

“It is!” Stig said, choosing that moment to add to the conversation. He looked surprised for a moment as their attention shifted to him. “Um, I don’t quite know who you are. But this,” he gestured to the ground. “is Jason. For real.”

Apollo looked like he might just hit Stig with a musical instrument, but Meg interrupted that impulse.

“Who are you?” she asked.

“Uh, Stig,” he replied, as if that answered anything. “I’m an einherjar. As is Jason.”

The word meant something to Apollo. His arm relaxed. “An einherjar . . .” He shook his head. “I know that word . . .” He paused, and groaned. “Why does my mortal memory act up when I need it!”

“Relax,” Meg whispered, though she didn’t look to be following her own words.

Lester sighed. “Einherjar . . . that’s not a greek work. Or Latin.”

“No.” Jason sat up. “It’s norse.”

His eyes widened. “Norse . . . I never learned much about them. The Norse deities rose up after us, never as interesting as us. But they had nine worlds, right?”

Stig nodded, hand still gripping his sword. “Do you remember much about their afterlife?”

“Valhalla, isn’t it?”

“The chosen warriors of Odin. They may have died, but they were chosen to be reborn as semi immortal soldiers, destined to fight at the end of the world.”

Lester frowned. “So what you’re saying--”

“Yeah,” Jason said, still a little dizzy. By some dumb luck, he has been chosen again to be a part of some new demigod haven. He had tried not to think about it to much. But that was it.

“So you are Jason.” Lester seemed to have relaxed now. Mostly. Was it possible to relax when you were staring in the face of a demigod you last saw being stabbed in the back? “Which means I hit Jason with a ukulele. Oh gods, I’m sorry! I panicked!”

“It’s fine,” Jason said, ignoring his throbbing head. “You're here to see Nico, right?”

Lester blinked. “Nico! We better go to him. Do you know the way to the turtle pond?”

“Of course.” Jason patted his shoulder, which made him flinch. Guess he was still tense. “We need to introduce you to the rest of the group.”

“There’s more einherjar?”

“Yeah. Two isn’t enough for a quest.”

They cut back across the grass back to the meeting location. Nico was pacing around the bench. His eyes lit up when he saw them.

“I see you found Apollo,” Nico said, taking them in. He probably had an idea of how the meeting had gone.

“We sure did,” Jason replied, bitterness leaking into his voice. His head still hurt. He sat down on the bench. "Everyone, this is Apollo. Or, um, he was."

"Next time, I'll introduce myself," he muttered. "I'm the god of music, the sun, archery and other stuff."

The others looked mildly impressed. 

“There’s hearthstone and Blitzen, and Alex, a child of Loki.”

"All einherjar?"

"Only me, Magnus, and Cyra," Alex said.

Lester pointed at Magnus. “I think I know him.”

“I’m Annabeth’s cousin,” he sighed, clearly tired of that being his most notable charecteristic. “Son of Frey.”

“Oh, I remember Frey!” He smiled. “He was, um . . .” He cleared his throat. “Though he had this sword that would not be quiet. It did have some singing talent, I’ll give him that . . .”

“Yeah,  _ I _ have the sword now.” Magnus tugged at the runestone around his neck, and it morphed into Jack, making Lester’s mouth fall open.

“Oh. Would you look at that,” he said, eyes full of shock. 

“It’s a surprise to see you too. There was no need to be rude. I thought you enjoyed my coversations”

“I apologise--that was a few hundred years ago. What was your name? Sum, summerbrand?”

The sword glowed. “My name is Jack now. “

“Well, good to meet you again, Jack. I--” Lester’s expression faltered. “No.”

“What?” Jason said, already reaching for the coin in his pocket. 

Lester rolled his eyes, and reached into his quiver. “The arrow of dordona is very happy to meet another talking weapon. He wanted me to introduceth him.”

“He wanted to  _ what _ ?” Cyra said.

Lester clicked his tongue. “His english is a bit outdated. He makes me slip up.”

“Is he . . . talking now?”

“Yes. Conveniently, I’m the only one who can hear him,” he grumbled, and placed the arrow on the table near Jack, who glowed brighter. “Go make some friends.”

Ok, time to move on from that. “Right. Then there’s Cyra, who’s a valkyrie”

She waved, only to have Apollo frown at her.

“There’s something about you,” he said. “I can’t figure it out.”

“I’m five hunderedish. Is that it?”

“No,” he replied, though he still looked mildly surprised. “Are you a demigod? Who's your parent?”

“Different sun deity. Daughter of Sol.”

“Phew. You scared me--I thought I had met with most of my children by now. That’s what it was. You had a sort of vibe, you know, of a sun god.”

“Most?” Jason asked.

Apollo ignored him. “Speaking of your mother, I need to talk to her. I took one of her shifts pulling the sun, and she did  _ not  _ mention that the job involved being chased by a giant wolf. It took me months to recover from that ordeal. And she never apologised.” 

“You could have researched a little bit about Norse mythology before you took on the job. Getting chased by wolves is like, base level stuff.”

“Well I’m sorry! I didn’t expect to interact much with other pantheons. We usually stick to our own.”

“Until things like this happen.”

“Yes.” His eyes fell on Jason “How _did_ this happen?”

He scratched his neck. “It’s not something we quite understand.”

“Well, part of it is my fault,” Cyra said. "The rules of the afterlife are a little different in the norse world. Most end up in Hel, the home of the dishonourable dead. However, those who died bravely have a  _ chance _ to end up somewhere else. Residents of Valhalla and Folkvanger have to be chosen by people like me. Usually, they aren’t roman demigods but . . . I chose Jason. And I stand by it.”

“But why did you choose Jason?" Magnus said. "You said it yourself, California was far from Valhalla. What made you go there?”

“I don’t know.” She glanced out towards the turtles, which he could see poking their head out the water. “Sometimes I’m told certain places, others, like that certain night, it’s more of an instinct I’ve developed over the centuries. It was just the place to be."

“Could one of the gods, greek or Norse, have guided you there?” Apollo asked. “Visted you, talked to you, and convinced you to end up there?”

“I don’t think it was anything else. But . . .”

“My guess is on Hera,” Nico interrupted. “What?” he added, seeing the others' expressions. “She’s always had a sort of  _ liking  _ towards you. She swapped you the first time. If she knew something bad was coming, she’d want to prepare.”

“The same way she did before.” Jason shook his head. It was, somehow, logical. Maybe he should have seen this coming. Anything that happened in his life wasn’t his own. He had been a piece of a puzzle all his life, and he was tired of it.

“It would make sense if someone tried to send me to Valhalla on purpose," he said. "Based on what we have learned about Nero’s plans.”

Could he have been chosen to stop the new triumvirate? Did he have some insight to offer? Jason had been given a prophecy. That had to mean something. 

Lester’s expression darkened. “What?”

“He’s made an alliance with some of the Norse gods,” Jason said. “In an attempt to rebuild the triumvirate.”

Jason relayed the story back to him--from leaving Boston, the attacks, and Camp Half blood. How Holler, the sorceress and Idun were all involved.

“We think it might be some kind of trade. The apples of immortality for something else.”

“What would a pair of minor norse gods want?”

“There are many minor Norse gods that we know nothing about,” Alex said. “There’s probably many who have faded without their stories being told. Without much info, it’s hard to guess a motivation.”

"But he doesn't have the apples anymore?" Lester asked.

"No," Jason replied. "But they may not have realised. A nyway, that’s two more enemies we have to find a way to defeat. Once we leave the tower--"

“No.” Apollo laid his hands on the table.

Jason raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean, no?”

“No. You aren’t helping. You will not enter the tower with us, you will not fight Nero or Python. You can sit on the bench and watch the turtles.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“I have never been more serious. This is my fault. And I’m the one who needs to fix it.”

Jason didn’t know how to reply. Apollo had changed so much in such a short amount of time. He seemed even less like a god then back in California. And he had an bad idea about what may have caused it.

“This is my fight," he said, and Jason saw another glimpse of that godly anger from before. "None of you are coming.” 

“I’m coming,” Meg added. “Because you can’t tell me what to do.”

Lester sighed. “Yes. Of course. But it’s just me and Meg.”

“But . . . that’s not enough people. There’s Holler, and the sorceress--”

“I’ll find a way. My godly powers are starting to return, I can handle it.” His tone was less than certain.

“You need us," Jason protested. "You’ll never succeed without help.”

“No,” he snapped. “I was sent here to fix the mess that I created. I will not let any of you get involved. I . . .can’t let you risk yourselves like that.”

Of course. That’s what this was all about.

Jason sighed. “Apollo, that wasn’t your fault.” 

“It was! I forced you onto that quest, knowing what would happen.” Tears were forming on on the edges of his eyes now. “It’s only by some lucky force you’re back here today.”

“I’m here because I’m supposed to help you. I received a prophecy--”

“That doesn’t matter,” he yelled. “I can’t let that happen again. No more demigods will die for me.”

He hadn’t expected a fight. He was supposed to run through the new info, form a plan and take on the tower. But nothing in the last few days had gone the way he wanted.

Lester rested his head on the bench, muffling the sound of his sobbing. “I’m sorry, Jason.”

“Apollo . . ." He reached out a hand towards him. "There’s nothing you could have done. That’s just what happens with being a demigod.”

As much as New Rome was safe, they knew this. No home was stronger than the will of the gods, and the fragile lifelines of mortals meant nothing to them. Jason had lost too many people over the years, seen too many battles end. He had experienced it himself. But he there wasn’t anything he could do to change it. He could leave it behind--as much as he may have tried.

“And that’s what I’m sorry for!” He looked back up at Jason, and wiped his eyes, before continuing. “It shouldn’t be that way. Demigods should live their lives by our demands. While I have been here for a few months, I have almost died at least thirty six--”

“Thirty seven,” Meg corrected.

“Thirty seven times! I can’t imagine what it has been like for people who have lived their whole lives this way.” He shook his head. “I don’t want to do this anymore.”

“You’ll be a god again soon.”

“No . . . I don’t want demigods to have to do all this. It’s not fair.” He sat down on the grass. “I don’t want anymore people to lose their lives because of me. Or any of the gods. They should be able to live normally. It shouldn't be a burden.”

This was not the Apollo who had convinced him to join him a few weeks back. It was not the Apollo he knew from stories and legends. This was someone new.

“You died because of me. If I hadn’t forgotten about the other oracles, this quest wouldn’t be necessary. And if we had accepted help from demigods early on, would the giants have grown to such a threat?” He sighed. “It’s all a cycle. And I am putting an end to it. By going to the tower alone.”

“With me,” Meg repeated.

“Yes. And no one else.”

“You’re just going to walk in there and face your greatest enemy and who knows what else alone? That’s it?”

Apollo stared at him. His eyes were filled with determination--but there was fear amongst it too. “Nothing you say can change my mind. This is not your quest.”

Apollo stood up from the park bench. He picked up his bow and took Meg’s hand. “Goodbye, Jason Grace. I will see you soon.” 

He turned around and began his journey out of central park.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm loving lester's arc in the books and I hope to do it justice here. it's so weird to see it all through Jason though.


	19. we buy souvenirs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aren't you glad I didn't take another month to update? I sure am

Jason sat for five minutes before giving in and breaking the silence Lester had left.

“I’m going after him,” he announced. 

The rest of the group turned to him. They too had remained quiet in the absence of Lester. There wasn’t much to say about his outburst. But although he hadn’t said much, Jason’s head was spinning with thoughts about what to do next. They couldn't be idle when Apollo was running around.

He stood up--they clearly weren’t going to add anything at the moment. “We can’t stop here.” They came from Boston to help Apollo, who might have changed a lot but apparently had kept his godly stubbornness. “We have to help him.”  _ He  _ had to help. 

“Jason,” Nico said. “He wanted to go alone.”

“And you’re just going to let him?” he yelled. He was supposed to be reasonable, not arguing like this. He felt like a child back at Camp Jupiter. He didn't even act this way back then.

“You don’t think I wanted to go with him? The last thing I want to do is leave him to waltz in there by himself. But what else are we going to do?” 

"I don't know," Jason mumbled. He just hated _waiting_.

“This is not your quest. You don't get to make the decisions.”

“But the prophecy--” he protested. He was used to making decisions, no, he didn't want to be in that position anymore but this out of control feeling wasn't worth it

“Interpreting prophecies to fit you doesn’t get you anywhere,” Nico interrupted. He sat on the top of the picnic table, so that he ended up taller than Jason. “It will only end badly.”

His words made Jason think of Micheal Varus, who stabbed him the first time. He interpreted the prophecy of seven before its time, and it cost him the cohort’s eagle and his life. The son of Janus, god of doorways, of beginnings, and decisions.  Like Cyra had told him, he had a choice to make this second chance worthwhile. He could choose what his future would be, and that started with Apollo.

“I can’t let him die after he’s come so far.” Jason shook his head. “He’s changed.”

"I know. He seems less mortal." He frowned. "Like, he doesn’t have that aura of death he did when he arrived at Camp half blood.”

“No. It's more than that.” Maybe his words had changed him--and that Lester was trying to learn to be better, to remember this experience and what it meant to be mortal. Jason had to as well. It might be one of his last chances. “That’s not what I meant. He’s become less like a god.” 

“I know. It’s kind of strange.”

“We can’t let it be for nothing.” Because he made a promise. And promises went two ways. Jason had to remember what it meant to be mortal. That meant caring about things because they were temporary, and that made them special. He had to protect that, not give up now. 

Nico sighed. “No matter what I say, you’re going to leave, aren’t you?”

He wasn’t the kind to be reckless, to disobey orders and go charging into a fight. He was supposed to be the rational, level headed praetor.

But that legacy was finished.

“Yes,” Jason admitted. He had already been thinking of a way to break off from the group if it came to that. He couldn't walk away from this. 

It didn’t matter if he died. The mission came first. That’s how he had been raised.

Maybe he had more in common with the Norse than he realised.

Yes, that mindset had led him to his death the first time. But now he had a second chance. He couldn’t waste it. 

“Fine.” Nico laced his fingers together, his skull ring reflecting the sunlight. “What’s your plan?” 

Triumvirate tower was not hard to find. Jason had seen plenty of photos of it while researching with Piper--gods, if he good go back to then--and could recognise it amongst the busy New York skyline. It was the third tallest building in New York, tall enough to be noticable and ominous but not so much that it attracted attention or worse, tourists. 

The group was able to cut across central park towards the building looming above. The city around Jason was so at ease. Mortals were able to live their whole life without worrying about gods and emperors and the end of the world. He was almost jealous. But it wasn’t something he could escape.

He glanced back at the other four. Cyra, Magnus, Alex and Stig had joined him, while Nico, Hearth and Blitz had made plans to meet up at the end. 

Five was quite a few for a quest, three would be more balanced. But he was glad to have numbers in a situation like this. He surely needed it.

Of course, if it was up to the Norse, they would bring along their symbolic nine if they wanted things to be balanced. It would also work if they wanted to attract every monster in the New York metropolitan area. 

And then the building loomed over them. The place where Nero waited, alongside python and who knows what other Norse deities. Would they hide up there together, protected from the threats against them? Two gods and an emperor were a lot to take, but this was what he wanted. Or what he had chosen to do.

“How are we going to get in?” Magnus asked, staring upward. “I sure hope you’ve thought about this.”

“Of course I have. We’re going to fly up there.” Jason looked upward. The building was almost 1500 feet. And Nero would most likely be waiting at the top of it all. “Do you still have Freya’s falcon cloak?

Magnus groaned. “Of course I still have it.” He opened his backpack, and pulled it out. “I couldn’t lose it she'd kill me. She’s a war goddess, you know.”

He placed it on his shoulders. “Do we have to fly? There has to be another option.”

“You’re just saying that because you’re bad at it,” Cyra said. 

“That’s exactly what I’m saying!”

“You’ll be fine,” Alex said, before transforming into a green and pink hummingbird.

Magnus sighed.

“Um, I can’t fly,” Stig said. “Any plan for that?”

Jason didn’t want to admit that no, he did not have a plan for that. “I’ll go and scan for an entrance. Then we’ll reevaluate.” He needed the little bit of time flying to actually come up with a plan.

Jason focused in on the air around him, waiting for a few seconds before pulling the winds towards him. His feet lifted off the ground. The residents of New York would have an interesting view today.  But the further he rose and the closer he came to the building, his muscles began to tighten. He couldn’t fly any further. He pushed again, only for the invisible barrier to push him back down towards.

He fluttered back down to street level. “There’s some kind of magic around it. I can’t fly too close.” Of course Nero would have some kind of protection for surprise flying attacks. Or, perhaps more likely, the sorceress had put it up.

“So now what?” Magnus asked.

“What else can we do? We’ll enter normally.” He reached for the door.

“No way,” Cyra said. “Do I have to be the only one here that thinks logically? If we walk in there with our Hotel Valhalla t shirts, someone’s going to notice. If the emperor man has made an alliance with norse gods, there’s no predicting who else is in there, and who else might recognise that.”

Magnus frowned. “She does have a point.” 

“Too bad you ditched Hearth,” she added “He could have magicked up some disguises.”

“So you’re blaming me?” Magnus exclaimed. “This was Jason’s idea!”

“So what do you suggest?” Alex jumped in, stopping the argument before it went any further. 

She folded her arms. “I say we need to find some new clothes.”

“Where?”

“Um, I haven’t properly visited a modern day city for at least two decades. I was hoping you knew.”

Jason sighed. Looks like they were going for a walk. Maybe he would actually get to do some sightseeing while in New York.

They followed the street they were on--it couldn’t be too long before they found something for an adequate disguise.

Five minutes later, Cyra spoke up.“What about here?” Cyra glanced upward at a small store decked out in red white and blue with all sorts of New York memorabilia.

Jason frowned. “Cyra, it’s a souvenir shop.”

“And?” She pointed the window display of  _ I <3 New York  _ shirts. “It’s got what we need.”

“I guess. But there’s probably . . . better options.” The point was to avoid attention. He didn't think these fit the bill.

“We don’t have a lot of time," she said. "We have to go and help your friend.”

She was right. And an overpriced tourist tee would feel less jarring than the Valhalla shirt.  Who knew you could have so much longing for a purple shirt?

He pushed open the glass door. The store bombarded him with cheap looking keychains, snow globes, fridge magnets and more. Speakers blasted pop music. The whole room smelled vaguely like coffee.

“Let’s not spend too much time here,” Magnus said. He started to flip through the rack of t shirts, pulling out a few. He dumped one in each of their arms. 

Alex frowned. “Do these come in green?” 

“I think you’re out of luck.”

He laughed. “There’s no way I’m wearing this.”

“There’s no way we are going in the way you are now, if you don't want to completely ruin out chances of getting inside the tower.” Cyra snatched the shirt from his hands, as well as taking the others. She started to amble to the counter. Jason forgot she had been train, for _centuries_ , for this kind of stuff. It scared him a little.

“What’s the statue of liberty bobblehead for?” Stig asked, pointing to the stack of items in Cyra's hands.

“Because I think it’s cool,” Cyra replied. She placed a her items on the counter, followed by a few pieces red gold.

The cashier frowned, and picked up one of them. “What is this?”

“More than we owe you. Should be enough for the conversion fee. Have a good day!”

She turned around and skipped out of the store, leaving them too stunned to reply. 

Jason gave an apologetic wave, before following her out.

“I don’t think you can convert red gold, Cyra,” Stig said.

She rolled her eyes. “You could last century. Surely not that much has changed.”

That was a conversation Jason didn’t want to deal with at the moment. Updating Hazel on the last sixty years had been enough.

Cyra handed out the shirts, and placed the Liberty bobblehead in her satchel. No doubt it would come in handy later.

Jason stared at the text on the shirt. They were really planning to try and take down Nero and the rest of his army in tacky tourist tees.

“Where’s your shirt, Cyra?” Magnus said. “We all have to suffer.”

“I don’t need one. I’ve got a disguise of my own.” She unraveled her trademark orange scarf, and threw it around her shoulders. Once it covered her, she morphed into a swan. 

He sighed. “I forgot Valkyries could do that.”

“I should have thought of that,” Alex said. “Now I’m stuck in this dumb shirt.”

“It’s probably better you stay that way,” Jason replied. “That way you’re more ready to fight. 

Cyra, in swan form, honked at them as if to say that she could fight just fine like that. 

“Alrighty.” Alex clapped his hands. “We better get going, right?”

Jason took a deep breath and pulled open the door.

He just had to pretend like this was where he was supposed to be. Hazel had told him how the mist worked a long time ago--if he believed something was real, so would others, and he wouldn't cause suspicion. 

He was good at it, no doubt. He had a role already assigned to him from the day he arrived at Camp Jupiter. Always, expectations to lead, to be powerful. Sometimes pretending he knew what he was doing was all that he could do.  It had gotten him far enough.

“Welcome,” someone said. Standing in front of him was a man well dressed in purple. “May I ask what brings you today to Triumvirate holdings?”

“He's a dwarf,” Magnus mumbled, just loud enough for Jason to catch it. A dwarf, like Blitzen. Proof that there was more than the two Norse gods involved here.

“Um.” Jason’s mind drew a blank. “You guys do financial stuff, right?”

He could practically hear the groans of the others behind him. He wasn’t completely wrong--Triumvirate holdings messing around was why Tristan Mclean had gone bankrupt. It was a reasonable excuse, that might give them a way to get further into the tower. 

“Over here, Durnir,” someone snapped. 

Jason turned. The person at the reception desk had stood up, woman with her long brown hair tied into a ponytail “That’s my job.”

He started making his way towards the desk. “Uh, I was told--”

“It doesn’t matter what you were told. I’m supposed to greet people and guide them around the tower.” She rolled her eyes, before turning her attention back to Jason. “Sorry about that. These Norse types, am I right?” she shook her head, not looking up from her computer screen. “Ever since they moved in here, they think that they own the place. We were here first. For centuries.”

“Right,” Jason said. It would be better to respond if he wanted to blend in. She had assumed he knew about the Norse gods, suggesting she knew he wasn’t mortal. And the fact that she may have been alive for centuries . . . better not to dwell on that. Keep up the guise.

“But either way, I’ll be happy to help you.” She started rapidly typing on her computer. “You wanted to look at the N. H. financials division? Excellent. We can get you into a meeting right now if you like.”

“Uh, really? I mean, that’s great.” He was losing focus, Jason thought. The whole room seemed duller, like when he wasn’t wearing his glasses.

The receptionist stood up from her chair. “I can take you there. Let’s go to the elevator.” She emerged from the desk, and cut across the lobby. She smiled at them. It was nice, but something was off about it.“I’m Ava. I’ll take you to the fourteenth floor, where . . .”  He was drifting away again. He couldn't pay attention, but that probably wasn't important . . .

Could he trust this Ava person? Almost a hundred percent not. But they needed a way to get into the tower, and it was better to delay running for their lives for as long as possible. 

The elevator doors slid open. Ava stepped inside. “Are you ready?” She grinned again. Something was definitely off.

Far from it, Jason thought, following the three boys and a swan. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me realising I've put a group of five together on a quest: h u h. interesting.
> 
> I know this one is kind of a transition-y one (I've noticed they take me the longest) but we have arrived! at the tower! things can only go down from here :)
> 
> uh durnir was a dwarf mentioned in a few norse poems (not enough for clear mythology), and his name means door keeper! thought it was appropriate
> 
> hope you enjoyed!


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> they're all idiots, except cyra.

Once inside the elevator, Ava started a spiel about the Triumvirate 

Jason knew enough about them from all his research with Piper to not listen. More than that, he was still struggling to keep focused. He was almost drowsy. There wasn’t anything to distract him, but he couldn’t pay attention to Ava’s words. All he could do was stare at the warped reflection in the shiny double doors. 

Magnus threw him a glance, like he too, was already bored. But this would be the best way inside without having to fight the horde of monsters in the lobby. Then what? That would have drawn too much attention, and they would be . . .

“Jason?”

He blinked. “What?”

“I was asking if you knew much about the organisation.”

Cyra the swan honked at this, almost as a warning.

“Uh, of course. I’ve heard a lot about the things you do.”

“Triumvirate Holdings has been around for centuries, which you knew, of course . . .”

Her voice started to fade out again. Jason stared at the gold buttons, and the tiny faces mirrored back at him. It reminded him of the Hotel Valhalla elevator, though with a fraction of the options. What was he supposed to be doing?

The tower. They were infiltrating the tower to ind Apollo and stop all the bad end of the world stuff coming towards them. Right. 

“There’s a lot of floors,” Stig said, watching the numbers click by on the screen above the door. _T_ _ hree . . . four . . . five . . . _

“We’re a large operation. Especially with the . . . recent additions.” Like the dwarf in the lobby. Who knows what else there could be? “We take advantage of the space offered here. All of it is carefully organised to make things run smoothly.” 

Jason did not care enough to listen to what she was saying. They just had to find a way in to the tower, ditch this person (was she a mortal? It was hard to figure out) and move on.

“The third floor is a training arena ” she continued. "And the fifth is the costume wardrobe."

“What’s that for?” Alex asked.

She scrunched her nose. "One of out old . . . business partners had a flair for the dramatic.  Now, on the the fourteenth is the financial division, where we’re headed.”

The whole things made Jason’s head hurt. He knew the tower was big, but to be here and see it for himself was different. He just had to stick to the plan (that they had already split from) and not die. He had done that plenty of times. 

Ava frowned. “I think your goose is attacking me.”

Jason snapped out of his thoughts and looked down, only to see Cyra still in swan form attached to the woman's foot.

“Ah!” Stig picked her up, at which she squawked loudly. “Are you alright?”

“Oh, I’m fine. My legs are like metal.” She winked. “Normally we don’t allow, uh, pets in the building. But we make exceptions for prestigious clients such as yourself.”

“Prestigious?” Jason repeated. He didn’t know what made him prestigious . . . but people tended to like demigods of Jupiter. That must be what it was. It wouldn’t be that surprising for them to realise that. Mosters tended to notice. It was inevitable. Now he was a prestigious client in this . . . place. Why was he here again?

Cyra honked again, earning a glare from Ava. 

She moved on quickly, straightening her grey blazer and continued to talk. “Anyway . . . closer to the top is where we make a lot of weapons! Dwarves and cyclopses work together, making armour, swords, onagers . . .”

All of this might help him navigate the place. He really should be listening, but he was tired. The last time he slept was his nap in the car, but the dreams hadn’t exactly given him the rest he needed. And it had been so long since then . . . What had she said? Something about onagers. That piqued his interest for a reason he couldn’t explain, and didn’t dwell on.

Eventually, the lift stopped with a ping; floor twenty three. The doors slid open.

Their new guide led the way, the others following her down the hallway they had ended up in. The walls were cement, and the room echoed with the sound of webbed swan feet waddling across the floor. 

“What’s this level?” Jason asked, glancing at Ava. “Is this where we’re having the uh, meeting?” He had to maintain a casual demeanor. They were in the building now. That was one step closer.

The elevator doors slid closed behind him. Ava sighed, but didn’t respond. She continued to walk through the hallway. Something was off, but he couldn’t mention it to the others without drawing attention to them. Would they have reliased? They other three looked as dazed as he felt, and it was tough to read emotions on a swan.

Until Ava paused. “You think you can just come in here, Jason Grace.” His name. That was not a good start. “You cannot return from the dead to interfere with something that does not involve you.” 

It did. It did involve him--that’s why  _ he  _ received the prophecy. He was becoming less certain each time someone brought it up. The words kept ringing in his mind.  _ Rise with the tower, see the sun set.  _ Was this going to be the end of him, like last time should have been?

“This has been centuries in the making, and will not be ruined by a demigod who can’t stick to one place.”

She pivoted around, and started to change form.

Jason’s mind took a while to catch up, but soon enough realised things had, so typically, not gone to plan. The terrible shirts had not done anything to help, and now they had far bigger issues. 

Ava’s long brown hair had been replaced with wavering flames, and her eyes glowed red. Her human legs morphed into a contrasting pair--one donkey leg, the other prosthetic bronze.

An empousa. That made more sense.

Jason was already reaching for his sword when Ava headed towards him. At the same time Cyra leaped out of Stig's arms, wing flapping. By the time she reached the ground, she had morphed from her swan disguise back to her human self to save them all.

This caught Ava’s attention. She turned her gaze away from Jason, and took in Cyra, her small stature and silvery garb . “What’s this? One of Diana’s hunters?" She smiled. "This might be fun." 

“I have no idea who Diana is,” she snapped, drawing her knives. “But I’m a valkyrie, if you were wondering.”

“Even better. I can stand you Norse types, but I’m not allowed to kill my colleagues. You’ll be fine.” 

She scowled. “I can’t say the same about yourself.” 

Cyra lunged towards the empousa, blades drawn. She dove for Ava’s legs, cutting into the donkey leg. The shock pushed her off balance and the flames on her hair burned stronger, grazing Cyra’s feet. She headed skyward again, smiling down at Ava.

“You can’t wait up there forever,” she snarled, before setting her sights on Jason. 

As she skidded towards him, he flung the coin into the air. A javelin this time--the long weapon would help him.

Ava sprinted towards him, fanged bared. Jason pulled the javelin in front of him, like some kind of pathetic shield (why couldn’t the coin change into a shield? Way more practical) to delay her. She grabbed onto the weapon, trying to tear it out of his hands. If he could just shove it towards her, he might be able to stab her

She was close enough for him to feel the heat of fire against his skin, which was the point he recalled how empousa had inspired tales of vampires. His head was beating, blocking out any other sounds in the room.

He tried to push the javelin back, throwing his shoulder towards her. Instead, to his surprise, Ava released her grip and took a step back. 

Suddenly off balance, Jason didn’t have time to consider her plan before she kicked him in the shoulder with her bronze leg. The pain shuddered through him, sending Jason toward the floor.

He looked up at Ava’s grinning face, but before she could make a second attack, Cyra zipped down from the ceiling, weapons bared. She sliced at Ava’s arm . She seethed with pain, but didn’t falter. She tried to return the attack, extending her arms out. Her claws dug in against Cyra’s skin, the marks turning a harsh red. 

She yelped, and flew upward again. “Can one of you do something? Seriously?”

Her current tools worked best at a close range--she could really use something like his javelin, which lay a few feet away from him. He stretched out to grab it, but his muscles started to cramp up. 

Not the best person to try and help at the moment, he thought, until Stig caught on to what was happening, and drew his sword. 

His movements weren’t overly smooth--he was unfamiliar with using the weapon, but his determination made up for the experience. He swung it towards her, but she was too agile, dodging the attack

Ava met his eyes, and a spark of recognition hit her. She grinned. “Oh, it’s you. So this was their big plan? The child of Holler, the key to the next step, betrayed them! Who could have expected this!”

He lunged his sword towards her shoulder, but she stepped backwards. “I was never a part of their plan,” he said. “I did not make that choice.”

“Either way . . . when Nero finds out that their agreement won’t stand,” the flames in her hair seemed to burn brighter, hurting Jason’s eyes. “Oh, that won’t end well for the other two.”

She was talking about the new triumvirate, and what held them together. He still hadn’t been able to figure all of it out . . . but Stig might have a bigger involvement than he had realised. Stig might not have been aware of his role either. He had thought he was just a spy for his father . . . but what if he was supposed to be more?

Nero wouldn’t make an alliance with someone without a reason. Having a spy in Valhalla just for precautions didn’t seem like a good enough reason. There had to be more to the plot. 

“I don’t care,” he yelled. “That has nothing to do with me.”

He charged again towards her, but Ava’s mismatched legs didn’t seem to affect her agility. With a laugh, she ducked, looking up to see Cyra swoop down again. This time, the valkyrie sliced at her face, giving the empousa a deep gash on her cheek. She scowled, golden ichor dripping down her face. 

Cyra seized the opportunity to strike again, piecing Ava’s back.

And then she faltered; it was hard to notice, but Ava seem to slip up for an indescribable reason. It wasn't just because of the blade against her back. She reacted to the pain, but then struggled again. She stepped the wrong way, giving Stig the perfect opportunity to stab her in the chest. The empousa melted into a puddle of golden dust.

That tiny moment--could it have been Stig’s powers? A miniature disaster in their advantage. It didn’t look like he realised what he had done--suprised that he had killed a monster, for sure, but not that any demigod powers were a part of it.

Cyra landed back onto the floor, and stared and the place where Ava had stood. She put her knives away, and glanced up at Jason.

He paused, thinking she would say something, but then Magnus jumped in instead.“Thanks--” he began.

“Don’t even start! I tried to tell you, without drawing too much attention.” Cyra yelled, knife in hand. He wouldn't have called attacking her foot conspicuous. “That woman couldn’t be trusted. And yet all of you didn’t seem to care. She was using some kind of glamour on you--

“Charmspeak,” Jason added. “That’s what it was.” His mind was getting less foggy now. Empousa had that kind of power to entrance people. He knew that it was usually guys, though he didn’t realise girls were unaffected. Maybe more likely was the fact that Ava didn’t think about charmspeaking a swan.

Either way, he was glad Cyra and Stig had ended up saving them. It had been a good idea for him to join them.

He smiled. “Thanks for that.”

She picked up her scarf off the floor, and tied it back around her neck. “You’re welcome.”

“You should consider using a longer range weapon, to use the flying to a greater advantage. A bow and arrow, maybe?”

“A what?” She scoffed. “My aim is terrible. I’ll stick with these.” She patted the sheath on her hip. 

“The hunters use bows,” he added.

“Forget the hunters then. I’m not going to give up years of practice with these to join an immortal girl group. I mean, I kind of already am in one. Can you imagine all the scheduling I would have to do?” 

Magnus glanced at the floor, where Ava had stood. “So, uh, do you think there’s more? We should get a move on before, you know, they find out their friend is dead.

“That’s a good idea,” he mumbled. It would help to locate a map of the building to get a sense of this towering place.

Jason scanned the area. Getting suddenly attacked hadn’t really let him take in the environment. The walls were made of stone, far older than the skyscraper exterior. More than that, was the  _ feeling  _ of it all. It all reeked with power and magic and age washing over him. This was all familiar. 

“I know this place,” he mumbled.

“I thought you said you had never been to the tower,” Alex said.

“No, I haven’t. But this place . . . I know this place.” It was the perfect design to keep unnecessary visitors from getting too close to Nero, and at a time, the rest of the triumvirate. It would give them ease of travelling to the different oracles, anywhere at all. Jason already knew they were familiar with this thing, but to create this monstrosity was a familiarity that would have taken centuries. But Nero had had the time.

Building the tower around the labyrinth was a terrible, incredible concept.

And eliminated any chance they had of safely finding Apollo. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hear me out; the labyrinth appeared in 3/4 of the current ToA books. if it doesn't make an appearnce in ToN I'll be a bit disappointed. this build up has to be for something? so that's kind of why I included it.
> 
> also it means I get to bully Jason again so I'm happy with that--
> 
> hope you enjoyed!


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> couldn't decide between hates water! Jason and hates underground! Jason so today I give you both

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back baby!

There were a few ways to get around the the labyrinth;

The obvious choice, Ariadne’s string, apparently had been lost with the Second Titan War--Jason wasn’t clear on all the details, but he had been told that much. Then there was the possibility of a clear sighted mortal. Unfortunately, they were fresh out of mortals. Mortals tended not to like tagging along on deadly quests, much less ones with good eyesight. 

A faun worked too--they were able to guide the way through. But that didn’t help them now. 

The final way was patience. With enough time wandering the maze, you’ll end up where you need where you needed to be. If you lived that long

He remembered one of the last times he was in the labyrinth; the memory could never leave him. He had trekked through the burning maze after being separated from Piper. He had just wanted to go home, but instead at last found the source of the flames.

And a warning. 

He should have listened, and not let Piper come along. He shook his head. Then what? He knew why he had died--because Leo escaped death. One of them had to fall, that was what the prophecy had said. It would have caught up with him eventually. Now that Jason was an einherji, what did that mean for the both of them?

That was a problem for later. Now, they had to find Apollo.

Apollo was somewhat mortal--would that let him navigate the maze easier? His mortal side was fading, which would make things more difficult, but would the remainder be enough to. Or he had been lucky and ended up at the correct location at the start of things.

“What’s the issue?” Magnus asked.

Had he been silent for that long? Time was hard to tell here. “We ended up in the labyrinth.” He scowled. “A terrible magic maze who’s sole goal is to make you get lost.”

Not to mention, he hated being underground. Being away from the sky for too long made him anxious, like his control was slipping. Already, a tightness spread through him. It would be best to keep moving.

Stepping over the pile of golden dust previously known known as Ava, he began to make his way down the hall.

“Magical mazes are always a bad idea,” Cyra said. “Valhalla’s practically a magical maze, and you saw how well that worked.”

He had to agree with that.

The maze had caused nothing but trouble since Pasiphae revived it. He wondered if the new sorceress, whomever she may be fueled it in the same way. That was not something he wanted to deal with.

Behind them, the lifted had faded, leaving only another stretch of plain corridor. No going back.

“All right,” he stretched his arms. “I’ll lead the way,” he said, speaking as if he knew what he was doing.

Walking the labyrinth was better with other people; voices were good at keeping your mind busy, or you’d risk losing your grip. It was only a matter of time before your mind gave up on understanding this place. The risks of such a large group lurked in the back of his mind. 

The floor below them melted into bricks, altering the sounds of padding footsteps.  It could have been from anywhere in the world. Realising the interconnectedness of this place, and how much it could be an asset to someone who knew how to use it. 

Jason had to admit, the design of it impressed him. Integrating this structure fluidly into Nero’s own headquarters . . .perhaps it had always been that way, and when the triumvirate relocated, it followed them. This maze had existed centuries for centuries. It not only traversed space in a fearful way, but time as well.

It hurt his brain too much to dwell on.

He wanted to speak, but the sound would invite monsters. He din't want to risk his friends lives more than he wanted the comfort of their voices. 

But then a new sound entered his perception--rushing currents echoing off the close walls. It made his stomach churn.

It wasn't long before the group reached the source of it. Their path broke, opening to a canal. The water stretched at least twenty feet across, all of it a mass of swirling darkness

“Looks like we need to cross,” Stig announced.

Attempting to wade through wouldn’t work, the water moved too fast. Too far to jump in one go.

Jason couldn’t break his eyes away from the twisting current. It reminded him of the day on the boats. And the day in the nymphaeum. And the day he crash landed at the lake in Camp Half Blood. Even after all that time on the Argo II, water made him nervous. 

Maybe it was a Roman thing--they avoided water when possible, so maybe they shouldn’t have situated themselves on the California coast. Maybe it was Zeus thing--an inbuilt aversion to water. But he couldn’t help it

“We’ll just fly over,” Cyra said, like it was obvious. It was obvious. It just hadn’t occurred to Jason.

“Um, great idea,” Stig started. “Except--”

“I know, you can’t fly.” She gave a fake pout. “I’ll carry you over.”

Stig frowned, no doubt considering their height difference. "Are you sure--"

“Hey, I flew this guy all the way from California,” Cyra said. “I can carry you across a river.”

Alex gave a wave, before turning into a bee.

Jason held out a hand. “That leaves you, Magnus. Unless you wanted--”

“No falcon cloak,” he groaned. He accepted Jason’s hand. “Never again.”

Jason closed his eyes, focusing on the area around him. He hadn’t tried to fly in the labyrinth before. Being so detached for the sky, most of his other powers had no effect. But this one was based on air and movement; it should work. It had to work.

He concentrated his power to his hands. It required more strength, but his feet lifted off the ground. Magnus yelped, kicking out his legs, making it all the more difficult. HJason avoided glancing down as they sailed across.

It didn’t matter either way. He didn’t need to see to know where he was going.

He should have known better than to test out his power in such a risky situation, and having Magnus didn’t help much. Without any precursor, his control dropped away, and the two of them plummeted into the water.

Jason had fallen into water so many times, but this was different. The water suffocated him, submerging him further under. He wasn’t that far from the surface, but it felt as though he would never reach it. All of the water encased him, dividing him from the above. 

The maze didn’t want him to get through. It tugged on the edge of his life; a taunt to see how far he could go before it snapped.

Jason held his breath. He still clutched onto Magnus, and with his other hand grabbed the ledge next to him. It wouldn’t last long.

Something grazed his fingers. He wasn’t sure who it could be; he could barely see what was in front of him. But with that contact to the outside, part of him was grounded again. Jason was going to get out of this place.

His body started to lift. His head broke the water, and with that breath his strength was renewed.

It was a combined effort from the other three to haul Jason and Magnus out of the water, and the einherji strength helped.

He panted, coughing the last dregs of water out of his throat. He was alive. Mostly. 

He glanced back at Magnus. “Are you okay?"

“I’m good,” he said, squeezing the water out of his souvenir shirt. “Just don’t like swimming.”

Jason could agree with that. His body was still adjusting to being out of there. He shivered.

“What happened?” Stig asked.

Jason paused before answering. “My abilities don’t work well underground. I . . . lost control.”

That was the best way to describe it. There may have been something more, but he didn’t worry them, since it was their first time in the labyrinth. It was just like this.

Jason sighed. With his feet on the ground, a bit of ease returned to him. One obstacle behind them. There would be far worse ahead. But it was something.

He glanced back, but the river had already vanished into shows, the labyrinth altering again. The sound of rushing water had faded from his ear, though the memories remained.

The whole tunnels had darkened without him realising. His mind was already slipping. 

Cyra snapped her fingers, and a ball of light illuminated in the palm of her hand.

“Should you really be wasting you powers?” Magnus asked. The chilly water hadn’t quelled his sarcasm.

“It’s just a little bit of light. I’ll be fine.”

He was glad for it. The cast fluttering shadows on the wall made him feel a little less on edge. And it was warm.

“Or Magnus can heal someone,” Alex said. “Then he turns into a glowstick.”

He frowned. “Is that all I am to you? A glowstick?”

Alex shrugged. “What else are you supposed to be?”

“Something more meaningful?”

Alex rolled his eyes. “Try again another time. Now you better be quiet unless you want every monster in this terrible maze to find us.”

Magnus growned, but didn’t continue to talk. 

They kept walking for what seemed like an hour; but here it was hard to estimate. It may have been an hour. It may have been five minutes. Either way, Jason was starting to get tired and they were no closer to navigating to the right place. It was worse walking when your shoes and socks were socjed through, leaving wet footprints wherever you went.

He blinked. The walls had shifted throm the sandstone to more natural rock formations.

Somehow it had happened without him being conscious of it; but this place could alter your perception. He had seen it himself, walking alone through the burning maze. It was better to be here with companions. Better to not be here at all. 

The labyrinth intersected with all sorts of places, so it wasn’t exactly surprising that they had encountered this place.

It was more like a cave than the tunnels they had walked through.Their footsteps echoed off the walls. A damp, cold feeling hung in the air. 

It didn’t change the tightness that hung around Jason, squandered all his powers. He could rely on his sword just fine but . . . it uneased him.

Stig scanned the walls. “This place . . . doesn’t feel good.”

“The whole maze doesn’t feel good,” Alex said.

“No. This is something else, I can sense it.” 

Stig’s brow was furrowed--something was particularly off. “What do you mean?”

“There’s something about this place.” He brushed his hand along the wall. “Maybe it’s a Holler thing, but it’s like something’s--”

The cavern shook.

“--about to go wrong,” he finished. 

A groan erupted from behind them . Jason tensed

Its skin appeared to be made of stone, and parts covered in moss. Their hair was divided into a pair of braids, trailing down their back. They wore a pair of baggy overalls that looked older than the being themself.

“It’s a troll,” Alex said. “They tend to lurk underground.”

“I hate trolls,” Magnus said.

“You hate every Norse creature we encounter.”

“Well, yeah.” he replied, pulling Jack out of his rune form. “They usually try to kill us.”

The troll groaned with rage, which was a good sign that they wanted to kill you.

But then it spoke, with a deep voice that seemed to make the whole room tremble;

“They call me a troll,

Gnawer of the moon,

Giant of the Gale-blasts

destroyer of the storm-sun

beloved follower of the seeress,

guardian of the grave

swallower of the wheel of heaven

What's a troll if not that?”

Jason swallowed his nerves. The follower of the seeress did not sound promising. If they were on the side of the mystery sorcress, they were opposed to them. 

But he knew what to do in a situation like this; it was an invitation. He wasn't much for poetry, but he would give an attempt.

"I am Jason Grace,

Child of Green and Rome

wielder of the sky

fulfiller of memory

Slayer of the sea monster

Destroyer of Krios

Champion of Juno

That is all I am."

What was next, he couldn't help but in the following silence. All of these achievements, but nowhere to go from here.

He met their eyes, and thought for a brief moment that would be enough;  but the troll had moved on from poetry had had their heart set on attack.

They stomped their feet and the walls shook again. Dust rained from the ceiling. Moment was over.

Ok, time to think; how could Jason defeat this troll?

He ducked as they swung one of their fists at his head. His gladius clinked against their arm, making no dent. It was as if their skin had been dipped in the styx--it was impenetrable. And he doubted they would have a weak spot.

Jason sidestepped, dogging some rocks tumbling from above. The ceiling was loose, he noted. If he could just zap them with a little lighting, it would make everything easier. He hated feeling so detached, almost helpless.

Jason glanced up. Cyra had taken the forefront of offence, having flown up to the troll’s head. She sat on their shoulders, trying to find a way that her knives could do anything. 

The effort was nice. That girl was determined, if anything, b ut if they didn’t find a solution to this monster, they would end up dead.

He glanced at the ceiling--maybe he could make part of the cavern collapse, if he managed to hit it in the right spot. It would wreak pounds of rocks falling upon the troll. As long as they got out fast enough, it should work.

Once again, lighting would make everything easier. Maybe Alex could transform into something with a bit of strength behind it. But he didn’t want to put his new friends in further danger. 

Jack flew past him, almost shaving off a few strands of hair. He dove towards the troll’s chest. But even the strongest sword in the nine worlds couldn’t take it down. The troll growled, looking down at the wound in their chest.

They were going to need more than swords to solve this.

Amidst desperately coming up with a plan, Jason caught footsteps from behind him. He bit back a curse. Two enemies might be too much to handle.

“What was that sound?” Magnus hissed.

Cyra broke her attention from the troll for a moment and cast her light down the hallway, revealing a silhouette.

The figure held out their hands, shielding their eyes from the light. Once they noticed the group, and the whole situation, they drew out a tall axe.

Some help, perhaps. They could use some of that as soon as possible.

“What are you doing?” he yelled. He sped towards them, his trench coat fluttering behind him. “You shouldn’t go around fighting trolls.” 

“We don’t have a lot of other options,” Stig yelled back, holding his sword out in front of him like it was going to make a difference. “Unless we want to die."

The man groaned. “This was not included in the job description. I’m never taking one of these jobs again.” 

He gripped his axe tighter, and sped towards the monster.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I demand more Jason being afraid of being underground. and water, the guy has been through too much and I'm not helping.
> 
> the poem comes from the prose edda, which is one of the main collections of norse myths. I used a few various translations for the wording here :)
> 
> anyway I have returned! once again, i do not plan ahead and it gets me later. this time I worked backwards, writing the stuff I did have plannned so the next chapter is pretty much done (my writing process is a mystery to all including myself) and I should post it in a week!
> 
> hope you enjoyed!


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me: aha the chapter will be up next week!  
> also me: ceases to exist for a month
> 
> back with another update, i have been too drained to write anything because what a year it has been! i hope that all of you are doing ok
> 
> i am still working on this story, i'm enjoying it too much to halt all together. aiming to finish sometime between the end of the year and febuary (when i started this. geez it's been awhile)
> 
> N E ways enjoy the chapter!

The sudden movement made the troll falter. They stomped across the room towards the visitor--Jason had decided he was a dwarf, he was similar to the one they had seen down in the lobby-- who was ready for them. He climbed atop a stalagmite, axe in front of himself, braced for whatever was happening next.

Jason felt he should intervene, but he was fixated on battle about to occur. The tension made it impossible to move, and he stayed put.

The troll stared down at the dwarf. All the sound in the room evaporated. Carefully, the man drew their arm backwards. Jason held his breath. 

He launched his axe right between the trolls eyes, and the space erupted.

The troll stumbled backwards, and the whole room trembled. Jason crouched down, trying to regain balance.

He watched as the dwarf leaped off the rock, and sped towards where Jason had stopped.

“Run!” the person called, eyes still fixated upwards.”The troll won’t follow you.”

“What about you?’ Jason asked.

“Oh, I’m going to run with you. I can’t take down a troll. That was an attempt at buying time.” He broke his eyes away. “What are you waiting for? If you don’t hurry up, this won’t end well for any of us.”

They didn’t know this person at all--why would he help them? Maybe because it benefited him as well. 

It was better to stick together in the labyrinth. No matter who you were.

Jason took a final look at the troll before sprinting away. The new arrival ducked, rolling under the troll’s massive foot, before following him. 

Their nameless companion overtook the group. Still filled with adrenaline from the troll, it relaxed Jason a little to have someone else take the lead. Being in control was exhausting. 

Once the troll’s cavern was far behind them, the group slowed, catching their breath. Gods, their tacky tourist tees were ruined, covered in dirt now, and Magnus was still soaked. Jason could only imagine how bad he looked.

The man turned to speak to them directly. With Cyra's light, they could see his features a little better. He had a hat obscuring most of his face. His clothes had a layer of dirt, likely from trekking through the labyrinth’s tunnels.

“Sorry about that,” he said, fixing the collar of his coat. “This place is a nightmare. Oh, you’ll be fine down here! Dwarves are great at navigation tunnels!” He rolled his eyes. “I don’t know what kind of tunnels they are, but they weren’t made by any dwarven inventor. At least dwarves are straightforward.”

“How do you know an inventor made it?” People didn't normally assume tunnels were man made. Maybe they had a way to find a way out, if the knew about Daedalus.

“Only an inventor would make something as cursed as this place. I’ve met plenty.”  The man continued to brush the dust off himself. “Now, onto the real question. What are you doing here? Smart people don’t go around fighting trolls.” 

“I could ask the same to you,” Jason said.

He scowled. “I work here. And intruders are not something we take lightly.” 

Jason grabbed the coin from his pocket, but faltered. If this person was working for Nero, then they were a risk. But at the same time, the risk had helped them.

Could monsters navigate the labyrinth? They would have to have some kind of solution. Something that could be used by him. Delay the attack, and see if they can gain something. 

“Who might you be?” he asked, before Jason could, his tone balanced.

“Not important,” Jason replied. “Take us to the elevator.” His voice leaked with the same powerful tone he used as a centurion, as a praetor. The kind of voice that made people listen.

It seemed to scare the monster a little, but not enough to convince him. “The elevator?” he said, trembling slightly. “Oh . . .you came in from Triumvirate holdings.”

There were other entrances? Of course. This place stretched on for infinite lengths--who knew how much the monsters were using it to travel around. To Camp half blood? Camp Jupiter? The more he thought about it, the more it scared him. If you controlled the Labyrinth, it was almost more powerful than controlling the oracles. Anyone truly controlling the labyrinth was a stretch; it was almost a living being. But anyone using it was someone to be feared.

“Can you take us back there?” he asked.

“No.”

Alex stretched out her garotte. “Please?”

The dwarf gulped. “No--I didn’t travel all the way from Nidavellar to join this Nero person only to have my job ruining by a couple of teens.”

That was his only purpose now. Job ruining teen. But perhaps this job ruining team could use this as an opportunity to learn more about Nero’s plan. 

Jason frowned. “Where did you say you can from?”

“Nidavellir.” One of the other Norse worlds. He might be able to help them figure out more of Nero’s plot, if they managed to get him to talk. 

“And what made you want to work with Nero?”

He sighed. “I was assigned. Many of the dwarves are connected with Holler, and were sent to help out here.” 

“So you didn’t want to?”

“No! I have to spend And this place doesn’t even give us health insurance.” He shook his head. “But it’s not like I have a choice.”

“You do have a choice!” Stig said. His optimism impressed Jason. “You can help us!”

His grip tightened on his axe. “No. I have a job to do.”

“But it’s not what you want to do is it?” Cyra said. “You have a choice to do something more. First you help us, and then you can make you life whatever you want.”

Her words were similar to what she had told him in the back of the strawberry truck, altered a little, for a bit of extra convincing for them. It seemed that she believed what she was saying, and to help others make the most of their lives--first or second. 

“This is not something that can be changed with the kind words of children.”

“I’m not a child.” Cyra scowled. “I’m a valkyrie. A job that I chose.”

He blinked. “You’re einherjar?” he scanned the group. “All of you?”

Cyra raised an eybrow. “What about it?”

“You shouldn't be getting involved in these dangerous plots."

"We chose to."

He shook his head. "I can take you to the elevator.”

Jason silently rejoiced. He wasn’t sure if he could trust this person, but it was the only option they had to navigate the labyrinth. If he was prepared for betrayal, would it sting as bad?

Either way, their break was over, and the moving began again.

“What was your name?” Jason asked.

“I didn’t mention it,” he said. “It’s Nyr.” His gruff tone suggested he didn’t want to talk--the sound might attract more monsters, but he needed more info. He wasn’t going to walk into Nero’s plot unknowing.

“You mentioned you were sent by Holler,” He added, cautious.

He adjusted the bag slung over his shoulder. “You ask a lot of questions.”

Better he was thinking about question than how to get rid of them. 

“What role does he have in all this?” The question teteered on risking Nyr turning on them, but it was worth the risk, if they got to find out more information. 

He paused. The silence that lapped between them was painful to bear “Holler is a powerful god, if he were at his full potential. He needs help.”

“What do you mean?” 

“Minor gods are often weak. They are weak because they are forgotten.” 

Jason felt a pang of guilt for all the gods who were like that, gods who once had the power they derserved. But their thrength was sapped by the river of memory and washed away, leaving them weak and often vengeful.

“Joining together is away to get power," he continued. "For their full plans.”

“What plans?” Jason demanded. Nyr flinched.

“The plans for Ragnarok.”

Magnus groaned. “It’s always Ragnarok, huh?”

“Holler was already interested in Ragnarok before this latest quest,” Alex said. “We knew that from when I bumped into him in Mullspelheim. He wanted to spread disease across the world and start anew.”

Cyra looked intrigued at this. It was like she had talked about--possibilities of a new world after the end of days. He still wasn’t sure what that consisted of, what that meant for so many of the gods. What was the point of bringing on the end of the world if it also meant the end of them? 

“But what does that have to do with Nero?” Jason said, thinking aloud. Nero wasn’t going to work with someone just because  _ they  _ wanted something out of an agreement. ANd the immortality plot seemed to be the work of the sorceress. It wasn’t enough.

“If you’re trying to find out more about his plans,” Nyr said. Jason’s ears pricked up. “I’m the wrong person to ask. I don’t really know the full extent of what the new triumvirate wants to do.”

“Oh,” was all Jason said. This person would still be able to help them--without a proper way to navigate the maze, they wouldn’t have gotten very far. This was still something. 

“I’m a lower rung person. A vessel of sorts, for navigating, guiding groups to and from places.”

“Where?” Jason blurted. 

He didn’t respond. 

Nero had groups on the move--no doubt for another attack. They had just struck Camp Jupiter, and the reminder pained him, knowing his childhood home was battered. Nero had access to the whole world. He could strike anywhere he wanted.

“Do you know the other person he’s working with?” Magnus asked, taking the focus off Jason for while. He could see that was the best move. Nyr was clearly getting tired of his queries. A new perspective might ease the tension

Jason had almost forgot the others were behind him at all. It was all so quiet.

“The sorceress? Of course I know her.” He shivered. Clear answers weren’t something he had expected. “She’s got quite a reputation.”

“Who is she?” 

“You don’t speak her name unless you want to be reckoned with," he growled. "Names have power.”

Jason wasn’t sure if he was keeping to the general rules or didn’t want to give them any more info.

After another stretch of minutes, Nyr picked up his pace. 

Jason frowned. “What’s wrong?”

“You wanted to get there quick, right?” He turned around the face them as they followed a corner. He now continued to walk backwards, meeting Jason’s expression. “I’m just keeping to punctuality.”

A suspicious statement--Jason was still not sure about him. He just had to hope they would end up at the elevator. One task at a time.

Nyr’s eyes widened as he gasped. Jason swiveled around to see what has struck such fear into him.

“I thought you said the troll wouldn't follow us,” Jason hissed. The familiar creature only gave him one explanation; betrayal. The troll roared, the sound echoing down the hallway.

The dwarf furrowed his brow. “I miscalculated. It seems the maze really wants to heed our progress.”

Jason groaned. His fear seemed genuine, maybe it was a surprise. He couldn’t think now, they both started to speed, the other four following.

“They tend to remain in their our boundaries,” he continued, the words garbled from running. “This is unusual.”

Just keep moving, Jason reminded himself. If he was lying, he could attack him after this threat.

“There!” Magnus yelled, snapping away Jason’s attention. 

The metal doors, gleamed in the half light from Cyra's palm were a stark contrast to the hallways they had already passed through. All they had to do is make it there before the troll did. Easy.

It couldn’t be more than three hundred feet. Jason pushed harder, his leg muscles straining. He was already tired. He wasn’t sure much more he could deal with. 

The increasing noise from thundring footsteps suggested the troll approached closer. But so did the doors--100 feet . . .

He was not going to give up this quest because he couldn't run fast enough.

He skidded to a stop before his body collided against the door.

“Here we go.” Nyr hurriedly tapped the button of the lift. He kept glancing behind him. Jason guessed they had around ten seconds before the troll reached them.

“C’mon,” he mumbled, his mental countdown syncing to his thumping heartbeat. None of the others dared to speak. 

On count five, the doors welcomed them. The group scrambled inside the comfort of the metal box. Alex slammed the door shut button, and he watched the view of the troll vanish.

The shutting doors were followed by a clunk against metal. The six of them shared a glance, waiting to see if the troll would break through.

Another thump. Then silence.

Jason exhaled. Once inside, Jason was at ease again. Out of the labyrinth, closer to the sky again his breath had returned. The pressure wasn’t squashing down on him, and they were closer to reaching Apollo.

“I supposed this is where you leave us?” Alex said. “Thanks for your help, but I think it’s best if we go our separate ways--”

He frowned. “No, I have to stick with you. You can’t operate the elevator on your own.” He brought out a keycard from his bag.  “What floor did you want?” 

“The top floor," Jason said, scanning the array of buttons.

He pivoted back to face them, mouth falling open.. “Wait, you want to attack Nero directly?”

“What did you think we wanted to do?”

“I don’t know, escape?” he snapped, throwing his hands out. He sighed. “No reasonable mortal would stick around this place.” 

“I didn’t come all this way to leave.” Jason frowned, looking at his face in the reflective surface. “I have a promise to keep.”

“There’s no way I am taking you to the top floor, unless you all want to die. Not to mention, I’ll be fired.”

“I thought you didn’t like this job.”

“There aren’t a lot of options these days.” He blocked Jason’s arm reaching for the button. “And I’m not giving it up for a bunch of kids.” 

Jason wasn’t going to attack someone who had helped them this far--even with the troll business, he had kept their deal. Not if there was another solution.

The elevator decided for him; it shuddered before shooting upwards.

“What did you do?” Nyr snapped.

“Nothing!” Jason said, which was true. He hadn’t pressed any buttons, nor manipulating the winds to pull them upwards. The lift operated on its own, rising with frightening speed. It might break through the ceiling and send them flying over New York city.

Or, it could be that someone wanted them to end up at the top, and making sure they arrived.

“I’m not a fan of this,” Stig mumbled, hands braced against the walls. “Can you stop it?”

“I’m not doing anything!’ he repeated.

Jason’s heart shuddered in his chest. His back was pressed against the walls, waiting the end of the journey. 

As quickly as they started moving, the elevator halted.

“I guess we’re here,” Magnus said.

The top floor. Beyond them, hopefully, was where Apollo and Meg waited.

The elevator doors slid open. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hhhh tension! and funky little side characters, i think that's just what my writing is
> 
> a final note: tower of nero comes out tomorrow! how exciting! i would have liked to finish this before the release date but clearly that won't happen. 
> 
> while i probably won't be reading it for a little white until I can get a copy, please be aware: I planned this story before I read it. any similarities will be unintentional. 
> 
> and most of all please, please do not post spoilers if something is similar. or at all. this is the final book in the percy jackson collection--let it be a surprise. let people enjoy it without any prior ideas.
> 
> hope you enjoyed and happy release day!


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